Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 18, 2016 – Brazil and USA met in an Olympic Venue and the result was a thrilling match witnessed by over 9000 people. In the end, the home team won by 3-1 (25-19, 25-15, 22-25 and 25-22).
Éder
Carbonera, Brazil, player: We have a special focus on the service
during our practices. We know that a strong service is a key factor to win any
match. It was good to use the knowledge from the practices into the game.Ricardo
Lucarelli, Brazil, player: I am happy that we could make progress
after every match. We practice different kinds of attacks and that has been
effective. All my team mates give me the support to perform as I do on the practices.Jack
Speraw, USA, coach: Brazil played great volleyball. Particularly the
first two sets, serving, passing and defense was spectacular. I thought that we
finally be able to play on the third and got good opportunity in the fourth but
we did not make it. In the end, they served really well. I was impressed with
Eder’s serve that really hurt our reception. They played a better volleyball
and deserved to win. The energy in the arena was really good.David Lee, USA, captain: We did not play well. We needed two sets to get on the game
and we only improved on the third. Brazil has a good team that attack and
defend with great quality. The crowded stands also helped them to get the match.