Oct. 03, 2023: In a five-set showdown with the world-ranked number-one team, Canada came up short in the tight tie-break set for the team’s first loss at the Men’s Olympic Qualification Tournament (OQT) Pool C in Xi’an, China.

Poland 3, Canada 2 (21-25, 25-20, 25-20, 20-25, 17-15)

"It was a very close game. We played a very good first set and then our side-out game got a little bit in trouble and Poland began to control our attacks very well, and we were making some not-so-good choices in our attack,” said Canada's coach Tuomas Sammelvuo, who also coaches a professional team in Poland (Grupa Azoty ZAKSA). "But then we came back to the game in the fourth set, starting well, and arrived in the final rush going one ball there, one ball here. … We will focus on tomorrow’s game without thinking about ‘what if’… we will just put our energy into the next game."

Though Poland led in attack points (62-51), Canada had the slight advance in blocking (13-12) and service aces (6-5). Poland lost more points to errors (35-29) as they attempted to put pressure on Canada.

Outside hitter Bartosz Bednorz of Poland led all scoring with 25 points (including five blocks and an ace); Stephen Maar was again strong for Canada with 20 points followed teammates by Eric Loeppky with 16 points, Arthur Szwarc (11) and Jordan Schnitzer (10).

So far, Poland is 3-0; Canada 2-1. Belgium and Argentina are also at 2-1 with four matches to go. Next, Canada plays host China on Oct. 04 (7:30 am ET; 7:30 pm local).

The round-robin tournament runs until October 8. Men’s Pool C includes Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland and hosts China will race for two spots at Paris 2024.
 
Previous Results:
(Oct. 01) ARG 1, CAN 3 (25-27, 22-25, 25-23,15-25).
(Sept. 29) NED 2, CAN 3 (21-25, 25-23, 26-24, 18-25, 12-15).

For more on the qualification system, visit  https://en.volleyballworld.com/volleyball/competitions/volleyball-olympic-qualifying-tournament/competition/qualification-system
 
This tournament followed the women’s OQT, which also saw Canada beat Netherlands in five sets on the opening day and have a solid tournament despite just missing out on qualification, only one point behind the second-place finisher, Serbia. Dominican Republic won the pool.
 
Viewers’ guide

Web site
In Canada live streamed: www.cbcsports.ca
Worldwide (by subscription): VBTV
Men’s Roster (OQT)
1 Pearson Eshenko, Banff, AB
2 Luke Herr, Winnipeg, MB
4 Nicholas Hoag, Sherbrooke, QC
5 Brodie Hofer, Langley, BC
6 Danny Demyanenko, Toronto, ON
7 Stephen Maar, Aurora, ON
8 Brett Walsh, Calgary, AB
12 Lucas Van Berkel, Edmonton, AB
13 Samuel Cooper, Hamilton, ON
14 Arthur Szwarc, Toronto, ON
16 Jordan Schnitzer, Surrey, BC
18 Justin Lui, Pickering, ON
20 Jordan Canham, Avonmore, ON
80 Eric Loeppky, Steinbach, MB
97 Landon Currie, Coldstream, BC
 
Staff:
Head Coach: Tuomas Sammelvuo
Assistant Coach: Joao Paulo Bravo
Assistant Coach: Michael Hawkins
Strength and Conditioning: Michael Cook
Athletic Therapist: Melissa Healy
Chiropractor: Abery Avender 
Performance Analyst: Lionel Bonnaure
Team Manager: Cassandra Nicol
High-Performance Director: Julien Boucher

Volleyball Canada Media Contact:
Jackie Skender
jskender@volleyball.ca
Mobile: 613-794-7676