Italy Crowned U16 European Volleyball Champions in Yerevan

The U16 European Volleyball Championship concluded in Yerevan, gathering the continent’s strongest youth teams. Italy claimed the prestigious title after a thrilling final win over Spain. France took the bronze, defeating Poland in the third-place match.

The awarding ceremony took place on August 3 with the participation of Armenia’s Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport, Hasmik Avagyan, European Volleyball Confederation Presidium representative Alisa Chesnuleviciute, and the Secretary General of the Volleyball Federation of Armenia, Karen Asmaryan.

Karen Asmaryan highlighted the success of the tournament:
“We hosted one of the brightest European championships—with a large audience and excellent organization. The high-quality broadcasts and fully prepared infrastructure received praise from the European federation. This is especially valuable considering that Armenia is not yet considered a volleyball powerhouse.”

The Armenian team, formed just six months before the tournament, played 7 matches against Greece, Romania, Latvia, Spain, Austria, Slovakia, and Poland. Although they lost all matches, they managed to win a set against Austria. Participation in such a major event was a vital step for the young Armenian volleyball players.

Team Armenia featured: Arman Davtyan, Gor Grigoryan, Khachatur Hnkoyan, David Muradyan, Rafael Shahnazaryan, Armen Manukyan, Alex Asmaryan, Hamlet Vardanyan, Tigran Akopyan, Hayk Gabrielyan, Arman Vardanyan, Robert Hovhannisyan, Hovhannes Avagyan, and Alex Unanyan.

The tournament games were held at the “Gazprom Armenia” training complex and the Russian-Armenian University’s sports hall. Around 80 volunteers actively contributed to organizing the event.

The U16 European Championship featured teams from 16 countries: France, Poland, Italy, Hungary, Latvia, Czech Republic, Turkey, Bulgaria, Spain, Ukraine, Austria, Greece, Serbia, Slovenia, and Romania.