Teams from Estonia and Ukraine top final charts at first EEVZA U16 Sports Schools and Clubs Cup

The very first edition of the competition organised by the Eastern European Volleyball Zonal Association (EEVZA) for sports schools and youth club teams in the U16 age group ended this past weekend with Estonia’s Selver Sports School from Tallinn and the team from the Vinnytsia Region (Ukraine) claiming top honours after three days of action. 

In the competition for young boys born in 2009 and 2010, Selver Sports School from Tallinn defeated the team of Zhytomyr Sports School from Ukraine in straight sets (30-28, 25-18) to emerge victorious. The third place was claimed by Latvia’s Jēkabpils Sports School, which defeated the second team representing the Selver Sports School from Estonia’s capital 2-0 (25-13, 25-22) as well. The fifth place was taken by the Liepāja Sports Games School, with SM Kaunas of Lithuania completing the final standing in sixth place. 

Pēteris Auniņš, a member of the Liepāja team, was recognised as the Most Valuable Player of the tournament, while Mark Norman Some (Selver Sports School I), Anton Kravchenko (Zhytomyr Sports School), Nikita Livča (Jēkabpils Sports School), Jan Erik Praks (Selver Sports School II), and Luks Nekrošus (SM Kaunas) received the same distinction for their respective teams.

In the decisive match of the girls’ tournament, the team from the Vinnytsia Region defeated SM Kaunas 2-1 (20-25, 25-22, 15-13). Pärnu Sports School and Daugavpils BJSS of Estonia and Latvia respectively claimed two victories and four points each, with the hosts securing a comprehensive victory in their matchup (25-7, 25-21). Selver Sports School and Riga Volleyball School ended the competition with two points, with the players from Latvia’s capital edging their rivals from Tallinn in a tightly contested match (26-24, 25-22).

Yana Voronjuka was recognised as the best player for the competition winners from Ukraine, as Saule Gedminaite (SM Kaunas), Darja Dobrovoļska (Daugavpils BJSS), Ksenija Nesterova (Riga Volleyball School) and Helene-Lisete Jirilo (Selver Sports School) did stand out for their respective teams. 

The event held in Daugavpils brought together young stars from across the EEVZA region, and the innovative project was initiated by the Latvian Volleyball Federation to provide additional opportunities for young players likely to make their national teams one day to compete internationally. Since the event did run across two courts in the same arena and matches were held simultaneously, this arrangement made sure the youngsters could closely follow the performance of other boys and girls and support each other.

This historic event was delivered with the support of EEVZA and the Daugavpils Municipality. It was a tremendous success, and the organisers hope that in future teams from even more EEZVZA National Federations will join and compete. The overall concept is that the youngsters are not only competing on the court, but they shall be able to combine the actual volleyball action with other educational activities. This would allow EEVZA to deliver a product that is even more attractive and appealing.