Cuba Defeats Brazil to Finish Undefeated in Volleyball Quadrangular

The Cuban men's volleyball team defeated Brazil in four sets on Monday to conclude the preparation quadrangular tournament undefeated at the PalaRescifina in Messina, Italy.

The Cubans overcame the Brazilians with set scores of 19-25, 25-21, 25-23, and 25-18, a result that builds on previous victories against Germany and the Italian hosts.

Against the Germans, the win came in a 3-2 thriller (25-23, 25-23, 20-25, 21-25, and 21-19) hosted in Reggio Calabria, while the match against the local host team in Messina ended 3-2 (25-22, 21-25, 16-25, 25-19, and 15-13).

Head coach Jesús Cruz's squad features setters Christian Manuel Thondike Mejías and Julio Alberto Gómez Gálvez; outside hitters Nivaldo Nadhir Días Gómez, Marlon Yant Herrera, and Miguel Ángel López Castro; and middle blockers David Fiel Rodríguez, Robertlandy Simón Aties, Thiago Suárez Mendoza, and Alexis Wilson Velázquez.

Rounding out the team are opposites Alejandro Miguel González Rodríguez and José Israel Masso Álvarez, along with liberos Yonder García Álvarez and Lázaro Arrechea Najarro.

Prior to this event, Cruz's players participated in another preparatory friendly tournament in Russia, which they concluded with a 3-2 victory over the local team in Ufa, capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan.

The set scores were 22-25, 32-34, and 20-25, concluding the series with a record of one win and two losses.

They also defeated Belarus 3-1 (21-25, 25-22, 27-25, and 25-21) before dropping a 0-3 decision (16-25, 19-25, and 22-25) to Iran.

The Cuban team arrived in Bashkortostan after splitting two five-set preparation matches against Dinamo LO in Sosnovy Bor, located in the Leningrad region.

They fell in the first match with scores of 25-21, 23-25, 25-21, 15-25, and 12-15, but rebounded in the second fixture with scores of 25-20, 25-27, 25-19, 23-25, and 15-11—strong results against high-caliber opposition.

The matches serve as valuable preparation for the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) Continental Championship, scheduled for September 11 to 19 in Moncton, Canada, where a qualifying spot for the Olympic Games will be contested.

The tournament carries high stakes on the road to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.

The United States has already qualified for Los Angeles 2028 as the host nation.

According to the tournament schedule for the event—which awards a single Olympic berth—Cuba will make its first bid for the spot against the Dominican Republic.

The remaining teams competing in the event include host Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.