Before the Tokyo Olympics, the final international volleyball tournament, the "Nations League," was held on the 5th in a qualifying round, and Japan lost to France 2 to 3 after a full set, losing 3 consecutive games.
The volleyball "Nations League" held in Italy is the last international tournament before the Tokyo Olympics, in which 16 countries, both men and women, participate.
The Japanese men lost straight to Brazil, who won the gold medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics on the 4th of the previous day, and lost two consecutive qualifying rounds, and played against the powerful France on the 5th.
In Japan, captain Yuki Ishikawa scored points with spikes from high RBIs in the first set, and also decided blocks at key points, and took the set 25 to 21 without giving the initiative to the opponent.
The second set dropped 22 to 25, but in the third set, 34-year-old Kunihiro Shimizu decided a powerful spike and service ace in the scene of 24 to 24 deuce, and took it 26 to 24. It was.
However, in the 4th set, mistakes in serve and spikes were noticeable and dropped 21 to 25, but the final 5th set could not stop the opponent's momentum and was robbed by 11 to 15 and lost with a set count of 2 to 3. ..
Japan lost 3 consecutive qualifying rounds, resulting in a total of 3 wins and 3 losses.
The tournament will be a round robin of 16 teams for both men and women, and the top 4 teams will advance to the final round in a tournament format.