TOKYO, 13 May 2004 — South Korea cemented their likelihood of reaching the Olympics yesterday when they staved off five match points to beat world champions Italy in the women’s volleyball final qualifying tournament.
The Korean women staged a remarkable comeback from 11-14 down in the final set tie-breaker, showing some effective blocking against the tall Italians, to score a 17-25, 10-25, 25-17, 25-18, 18-16 victory.
“We made it 90 percent certain to win the ticket for Athens when we defeated Russia yesterday. Today’s win made it almost 100 percent. I feel great achievement that we made it,” said Korean captain Ku Min-jung. “We believe in ourselves, we believe in each other, and just do our best. We don’t think about winning or losing. We believe that if we do our best, the result will follow us,” she added.
After saving five match points, including Kim Sa-nee’s service ace at 13-14 and Ku’s attack at 15-16, the day’s top scorer Choi Kwang-hee hit an unstoppable shot to take their first match point. Chang So-yun blocked Simona Rinieri’s shot to finish off the 103-minute battle.
Korean coach Kim Cheol-yong said they gained the momentum when veteran game-setter Kang Hye-mi replaced Kim Sa-nee from the third set. South Korea have now unbeaten four straight wins and Italy a 2-2 win-loss record in the eight-nation round robin.
Thailand evened their record at 2-2 when they whipped winless Nigeria 25-16, 25-10, 25-13. The winners of the tournament and the top-finishing Asian nation will qualify for the Olympics, along with the best two other teams.
