Ljubljana, July 7, 2019 - Belarus earned a 3-1 victory over Turkey in the third place match at the 2019 FIVB Men's Volleyball Challenger Cup.
Siarhei Busel, captain of Belarus: “It was a very hard game and difficult tournament. We had played already two months, at the European Golden League we were in perfect shape, but here we struggled with injuries in our team, so we could only fight for the 3rd place. Today's victory is a historical achievement, it's the first ever podium place for Belarus at the world level, it was also the first tournament for us when we competed with teams from other continents, so it's a perfect ending.”
Viktar Beksha, head coach of Belarus: "We didn't have any special preparation for this match. We have already played against Turkey in the European Golden League, so we knew them. Unfortunately we lost yesterday, but this was an extra motivation to be better today. We wanted to finish the tournament in a good mood and I am happy that we secured the third place of the tournament."
Adis Lagumdzija, opposite of Turkey: “After losing a semifinal 3-2 with such a small point difference, it's always hard to come back and find motivation. Especially, that we were not fully ready to play here, we didn't perform at the same level like in the European Golden League. I think we should have played much better, we couldn't make basic things right.”
Nedim Ozbey, head coach of Turkey: “The tournament is over and obviously I'm not satisfied, because I wanted my team to play the final.”