Aguascalientes, Mexico, July 21, 2019 - Japan defeated Italy in a five-set comeback 3-2 (23-25, 21-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-12) to win the gold medal match of the FIVB Women’s U20 World Championship in Aguascalientes.
Aihara Noboru, coach of Japan: “This is the first experience for Japan winning a gold medal; this is a wonderful team and they deserved this championship. We appreciate the fans' support for our team. It took courage and passion to come from behind; I am really proud of my players. It’s been a spectacular event for all of us.”
Mayu Ishikawa, captain of Japan: “We are very excited and happy. Japan always played together to overcome the many difficulties we faced during the gold medal match against Italy. All the team starters and the substitute players contributed tonight, we all had a chance to give our best to win the championship.”
Japan players giving thanks to the spectators at Aguascalientes after winning the gold medal match
Rachele Morello, setter of Italy: “We had the match in our hands, our performance had many flaws and we needed to be more compact. Japan had a lot of courage to come back from losing two sets, congratulations to them. For me it is really difficult to say goodbye to my teammates as we put an end to this generation and move on to the senior category.”
Massimo Bellano, coach of Italy: “From the third set Japan had more energy compared to ours; last night we finished a long match and we did not have enough time to rest. I will speak to my players tomorrow for consolation. This is a generation of players that are finishing second in the world, closing a circle for their junior category.”