2018 Sitting Volleyball World Championships Top Five Moments

The International Paralympic Committee provides their thoughts on what were the top moments from the 2018 World ParaVolley Sitting Volleyball World Championships, which finished in the Netherlands on Sunday.

Read the story on the IPC website or below.

The Sitting Volleyball World Championships left many unforgettable moments and some surprising results.

Paralympic gold medallists Iran confirmed their status as the world’s best male team by reclaiming the title against defending champions Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Russia, on the other hand, sealed their first women’s title after beating Rio 2016 champions USA in the final.

Here are five of the best moments in the competition.

Russia make history

Reigning world champions China and Rio 2016 gold medallists USA were the strongest on paper for the women’s competition. But European champions Russia upset all odds to claim gold following a 3-1 victory over USA in the final.

Can someone stop Iran?

With 2.46m tall Morteza Mehrzadselakjani at his best, Iran seem unstoppable. The world No.1 team followed up Rio 2016 gold medal with their seventh men’s Worlds title after defeating Bosnia and Herzegovina 3-0.

Netherlands fail to reach semifinals

Debutants Italy enjoyed a dreamed run on Dutch soil, even defeating the hosts women’s team 3-2 (25-18, 20-25, 25-22, 22-25, 15-11) in arguably the best match of the tournament. They denied Netherlands the chance to advance into the last four for the first time ever.

More expected from Egypt

The African champions had the potential to reach the men’s podium after achieving top-finishes at recent Worlds and Paralympics. But they were eliminated in the quarter-finals and had to settle for a sixth place following a 3-0 loss to Russia.

Princess Margriet attends

Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, who’s an IPC Honorary Board member, paid a surprise visit and joined the many orange supporters in the Dutch women’s team 3-0 victory over Rwanda.

Full results and more information can be found here.