Yugoslav volleyball national team at the Olympic Games in Sidney

Vladimir and Nikola Grbic (Yugoslavia)

Katowice, Poland, January 9th - Yugoslav men's volleyball national team has provided participation at the Olympic Games, which will take place in Sydney this year. The Yugoslav team, which had won the bronze medal at the last year's Olympic Games in Atlanta, has beaten the national team of Bulgaria in the final match of the qualifying tournament in the Poland town of Katowice, in front of around 7.000 spectators, after only 57 minutes of the match, with the result of 3-0 (25-22, 25-13, 25-16). Thus, with 6 wins and only 2 lost sets it has triumphantly ended the participation at the tournament.

Only the first set was equal - after a couple of good serves the Bulgarians have managed to even the score to 22:22, but not to win the set. In the second and the third set, to the pleasure of all those who were watching the match, the Yugoslav volleyball players have shown why they are considered to be the protagonists of the most attractive volleyball of the world.

Yugoslavia is the fifth known participant of the Olympic Games in Sydney. Along with the host Australia, the national teams of Italy, Russia and Cuba have also provided participation at the Olympic Games. The other 7 participants will be known after the qualifying tournaments.

Final match of the Olympic Games 2000 qualifying tournament, Katowice, Poland, January 9: YUGOSLAVIA - Bulgaria 3-0 (25-22, 25-13, 25-16)

YUGOSLAVIA: Batez, Boskan, Mester, Mijic, N. Grbic, V. Grbic, Geric, Vujevic, Miljkovic, Petkovic, Mrdja, Vusurovic. Coach Vukovic.

All matches of men's Yugoslav volleyball team at the qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games 2000 in Sydney

Round 1 (January 3): YUGOSLAVIA - Bulgaria 3-1

Round 2 (January 4): YUGOSLAVIA - Czech Republic 3-0

Round 3 (January 5): YUGOSLAVIA - Holland 3-0

Round 4 (January 6): YUGOSLAVIA - Latvia 3-0

Round 5 (January 8): YUGOSLAVIA - Poland 3-1

FINAL (January 9): YUGOSLAVIA - Bulgaria 3-0