2006 World Championships
Canada and Cuba claim Final Round spots (FIVB)
08/20/2005
Havana, Cuba, August 20, 2005 – Top seeds Canada and
Cuba claimed the two available Final Round tickets at
the 2006 Men’s World Championship second round
tournament (NORCECA E) in Havana after collecting their
third win from as many matches on Saturday.
The five day tournament, which began on Wednesday,
determined two of the four teams from the men’s NORCECA
Zone that will attend next year’s World Championship
Final Round in Japan.
After a solid opening performance against Panama on the
opening day where Canada won in
straight sets 25-18, 25-11, 25-17, they improved to 3-0
after a lopsided victory over Trinidad & Tobago on
Thursday and a 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-20) win over Costa
Rica.
Cuba, meanwhile, beat Trinidad & Tobago on Thursday
before collecting a 3-0 (25-8, 25-18, 25-14) win over
Costa Rica on Friday and a 3-0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-22) win
over Panama on Saturday.
Cuba and Canada will play for tournament honours on
Sunday.
Competing with the 14th ranked Canadians at the
tournament are top ranked Cuba (12th), Panama (38th),
Trinidad and Tobago (65th), and Costa Rica (65th).
In an alternate Zone Qualifier, the USA will be
competing with Puerto Rico, Mexico, Guatemala and
Barbados, to decide the other two teams that will
represent NORCECA in Final Round.
The tournament is a straight round robin format with the
top two placing teams advancing to the 2006 World
Championships in Japan. World ranking points will also
be counted from the results, which will affect placing
in next year’s World Championships.
