Iran succeeded in their gold medal hunt as they defeated Russia 3-1, winning its second title in the FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship. Japan defeated South Korea for the bronze medal. Amir Hossein Esfandiar from Iran was elected the MVP and Amir Hossein Toukhteh was selected in the tournament’s dream team.

Porya Yali, Morteza Sharifi and Amirhossein Esfandiar dominated in offence as they combined for 54 of Iran’s 59 attacks. Yali led Iran in scoring with 29 points, Sharifi charted 19 points and was Iran’s most efficient hitter, while Esfandiar played consistently across all skill sets. Maksim Sapozhkov, who came off the bench in the second set, top scored for Russia with 16 points.

RESULTS (Iran)
Iran 3 : 2 Italy (25-16, 23-25, 23-25, 25-19, 15-12) – Pool D
Iran 3 : 0 Mexico (25-19, 25-12, 25-18) – Pool D
Iran 3 : 0 China (25-23, 25-18, 25-21) – Pool D
Iran 3 : 0 Czech Republic (25-22, 25-12, 25-19) – Pool D
Iran 3 : 0 Turkey (25-18, 25-21, 25-13) – Round of 16
Iran 3 : 0 Brazil (25-21, 25-20, 25-15) – Quarterfinals
Iran 3 : 0 South Korea (25-23, 25-20, 25-18) – Semifinals
Russia 1 : 3 Iran (20-25, 23-25, 25-21, 20-25) – Final

Iranian team posing with their medals. Photo source fivb.com

Amir Hossein Toukhteh (best middle blocker, Iran), Pavel Tetyukhin (best outside spiker, Russia), Artem Melnikov (best middle blocker, Russia), Amirhosseini Esfandiar (MVP and best outside spiker, Iran), Shunsuke Nakamura (best setter, Japan), Im Donghyeok (best opposite spiker, Korea) and Kenta Ichikawa (best libero, Japan). Photo source fivb.com

Amirhosseini Esfandiar (Iran) – Gold medal winner, MVP and best outside spiker. Photo credit Payam Sani, volleyball.ir / IRNA

Porya Yali’s 29 points helped Iran to take down European powerhouse Russia to win gold. Photo source facebook.com-FIVB.InternationalVolleyballFederation

Individual honors: Best Outside Spikers – Amirhosseini Esfandiar (Iran). Photo credit Payam Sani, volleyball.ir / IRNA

Individual honors: Best Outside Spikers – Pavel Tetyukhin (Russia) and Amirhosseini Esfandiar (MVP, Iran). Photo credit Payam Sani, volleyball.ir / IRNA

Iranian team waiting for their gold medals. Photo source fivb.com

Iranian team celebrating after defeating Russia in the final 3 to 1. Photo source Payam Sani, YJC

Iranian team welcomed at the airport in Tehran. Photo credit BORNA

DREAM TEAM
Most Valuable Player: Amirhosseini Esfandiar (Iran)
Best Outside Spikers: Amirhosseini Esfandiar (Iran), Pavel Tetyukhin (Russia)
Best Middle Blockers: Artem Melnikov (Russia), Amir Hossein Toukhteh (Iran)
Best Setter: Shunsuke Nakamura (Japan)
Best Opposite Spiker: Im Donghyeok (South Korea)
Best Libero: Kenta Ichikawa (Japan)

The 2017 FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship was the fifteenth edition of the world championship for men’s national teams under the age of 19. The tournament was hosted by Bahrain in Riffa from 18 to 27 August 2017. 20 teams from the 5 confederations competed in the tournament.

Sources: FIVB | U19 Boys 2017 (News), Wikipedia | 2017 FIVB Boys’ U19 World Championship, Young Journalists Club, Borna News, IRNA