The Paris Olympics has concluded, with the home team France winning their second consecutive title in the men's volleyball competition.
The Japanese team was ranked 2nd in the world and was one of the favorites to win the tournament, but they lost to Italy in the quarterfinals and finished in 7th place. Looking back on this tournament as someone who supported the Japanese team, I can only say one word: "frustrating." I can't think of any other word to describe it.
"One more point" that couldn't be achieved
What was most frustrating was that in the quarter-final against Italy, despite them having four match points in total and having a chance to win with just one more point, we weren't able to see the moment when they scored that last point.
In particular, in the third set, they were leading by three points at 24-21, but they were overturned and lost the set 25-27. Up until now, there had been matches where Japan had turned the game around in similar situations, but it hadn't been very often the case that Japan had been able to do so, so it was quite a shock.
In the fourth set, they took the game to deuce but couldn't turn it around, and in the fifth set, they had one match point at 15-14 but couldn't get the one point they needed.
Ishikawa's attack losses stood out in the final stages of the sets from the third set onwards. An attack miss (out) at 24 points in the third set, a block and attack miss at 22 points in the fourth set, a block at 24 points, and a block at 15 points in the fifth set. Ishikawa's attack losses in this match were nine points, but five of those losses occurred at the end of the sets from the third set onwards.
However, that doesn't mean that Ishikawa was simply at fault. Rather, Italy played a large role in leading the team in that direction.
Ishikawa is good at a play called rebound, where he lightly hits the opponent's block with his attack and receives a loose ball in his own court. However, Italy often countered this by pulling back their hand just before blocking. If they made a loose attack aiming for a rebound without a block, it would become a chance ball for the opponent, so Ishikawa found it difficult to aim for a rebound and was forced into a situation where he had no choice but to hit a strong shot.
Even so, until the middle of the third set, Italy's spikes were landing well, as if to make up for their poor performance in the pool qualifiers, but Italy's tactics, which could be called rock-paper-scissors, gradually gave them the advantage. When Ishikawa spiked to score the 15th point in the fifth set, Romano of Italy, who was blocking the ball, held his hand back. Romano was teammates with Ishikawa in Italy and knew him well, so I think he held his hand back more than other players, being wary of Ishikawa's rebounds and blockouts. Ishikawa, who was watching this, shot a spike in Romano's direction at 15-15, but Romano had his hand out firmly at the time, shutting him out neatly.
In that sense, I think we can say that there was some bad luck with these attacks. If Ishikawa's spike that went out at the end of the third set had been hit just a few centimeters lower, or if the Italian blocker had jumped just a few centimeters higher, it would have been blocked out and Japan would have won. You can't really aim for 100% like this, so I think there was a fair bit of luck involved.
As time goes on, the scene that I personally feel more and more frustrated about is the service ace by Italy's Gianelli. This no-touch ace tied the score at 24-24 in the third set. Of course, Gianelli was amazing in that scene for serving the ace. However, the ace was taken right between Ishikawa and libero Yamamoto, and the service ace that fell between the receivers was something that Ishikawa himself had mentioned as something he particularly wanted to improve after losing the final of the VNL and after the friendly match in Poland just before the Paris Olympics.
It is very disappointing that we lost without scoring that one last point, but on a personal level, I was also very disappointed that we made mistakes in the areas we said we wanted to improve and gave the momentum to our opponents.
Were they able to show the culmination of their three years of hard work?
In the qualifying round for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Japan beat Iran after a fierce full-set battle and achieved their goal of advancing to the quarterfinals. That match against Iran was the best match of the Nakagaiuchi era, which had continued since 2017, and could be said to be the culmination of their efforts. It was an inspiring match in which both teams gave their best performances and gave it their all, and Japan won. There must have been many who became fans of the Japanese national team after watching that match.
However, at the Paris Olympics, I don't think we were able to see a match that could be considered the culmination of the three years under Coach Blanc. Even in the only win, against Argentina, I don't think we played particularly well as a team compared to previous matches in the tournament (although that may have been the case for the middle blockers and Nishida).
Of course, I believe that the Japanese national team gave it their all in the quarter-final against Italy, but I don't think that the current team is in a position to easily say "We lost, but it was good, we fought well," so of course it can't be called a culmination, and personally it makes me regretful, so I don't even want to say it.
It was also very disappointing that we weren't able to see a match that could be considered a culmination of the current Japanese national team, at the Olympics, an opportunity for the sport to be exposed to many people who don't normally watch volleyball.
In particular, the men's volleyball team at the Paris Olympics attracted a lot of attention in Japan, and the media coverage was unprecedented. In fact, the quarterfinal match against Italy recorded the highest viewership rating of the Paris Olympics (23%). It would have been nice if they could have appealed to the whole nation on that occasion, saying, "The men's team that we have been rooting for is so amazing! They are so strong! They are not just a group of good-looking guys! (smug)," but that opportunity did not materialize. On the contrary, there must have been many people who did not know much about volleyball who took it negatively, saying, "They were ranked second in the world and were said to be a favorite to win, but they only made it to the top eight." It is sad and frustrating.
However, it is true that we were unable to play as usual as a team and were unable to win.
Ishikawa's condition was not very good throughout the qualifying rounds, and it cannot be said that he was playing at his best, and Takahashi Ai's injured ankle was not in perfect condition. There was also stiffness in the whole team. Perhaps they were competing in the Paris Olympics as the favorites to win, so in addition to the unfamiliar environment, the pressure from the people and those around them was immeasurable. It also felt like the Japanese team, which always plays with a sense of enjoyment, was in the shadows. There was a similar atmosphere to the early part of last year's OQT (a tournament to qualify for the Paris Olympics).
However, in sports, you still have to produce results. Just like how we bounced back from the OQT, it would have been nice if we could have brought back the typical Japanese performance this time, but unfortunately we didn't get the results we wanted.
In the quarter-final against Italy, Italy had 113 points and Japan had 114 points, and some people say that Japan played better overall, but professional matches are meaningless if you don't win. On the other hand, in last year's Nations League third-place playoff, Italy had 100 points and Japan had 99 points, but Japan won (and I think this was the best match of the last three years).
I know that saying "Our men's national team is not like this, they can do much more" is disrespectful to the players who gave their all at that moment, but I was so frustrated that I couldn't do it without saying those words. It's especially frustrating because I've been watching them closely for the past two years and know that they are in good form.
But still, thank you for the excitement, thank you for becoming a team that I want to support wholeheartedly.
Looking at the Paris Olympics alone, it was a tournament that I can only describe as disappointing, but looking back at the three years since Blanc took over as coach, I can only feel grateful.
The Japanese men's national team was barely able to make it into the top eight at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Although they lost in the 2022 World Championships, they played a fierce battle with France in a full set, and then overcame their separation from Fujii and took on the challenge of the 2023 Nations League, defeating Brazil in the qualifying round and winning the bronze medal, their first medal in a major international tournament in 46 years. In the same year, they won the Asian Championships and qualified to compete in the Paris Olympics. And this year, they won the silver medal in the Nations League and reached second place in the world rankings.
I started watching volleyball in the early 2000s, and in the early 2010s I thought to myself, "I don't feel like supporting the Japanese men's national team anymore," but I still loved volleyball so I escaped to watching volleyball overseas. Although I had hoped that such an era would come for the Japanese men's national team, I am ashamed to say that I never expected it to happen.
At the end of the Tokyo Olympics, I thought we might be able to go to the next Olympics in Paris, but I never imagined, even for a second, that we would be one of the favorites to win.
Watching the volleyball they play is exciting and fun. The players are all naturally at a high level, and each one is wonderful and attractive as a person. And above all, they are strong. There has never been a Japanese men's national team that made me want to cheer them on so much.
Also, over the past two years, as a reporter I have had more opportunities to interact directly with players, which has further intensified this desire.
Up until this point, they had really kept their promises and were clearing their goals one after another, so I thought they would at least make it into the top four at the Paris Olympics, but I only had tickets for the final and the third-place match, so unfortunately I wasn't able to see the Japanese national team play in Paris. I underestimated the Olympic monster. I really regret it.
France, who have now achieved their second consecutive victory, were eliminated in the qualifying rounds at the 2016 Rio Olympics, the first time in recent years that they were considered favourites to win. As for Poland, they had always been considered one of the favourites to win since the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but had never won a quarterfinal until their victory in Paris.
Considering these facts, it seems to me that winning a medal at the Olympics requires more experience and a higher level of team maturity than at other competitions.
This result was really disappointing and frustrating.
But I am truly grateful for having had the opportunity to support the team so much. I really looked forward to watching the Japan Men's National Team every game. Thank you so much.
Several players and staff have already announced their future plans, so the team may change completely from next year, but I don't think the overall direction will change, so I'd like to continue supporting and reporting on the team.
Once again, I would like to say a big thank you to all the players and staff for your hard work. And thank you for the moving experience.
[PR] "ALL for DREAM -Footsteps to Glory- Japan Volleyball National Team Nations League 2024" will be available on U-NEXT from July 27th (Sat.)
A documentary program that closely follows the unknown behind-the-scenes of the "Volleyball Nations League 2024" and traces the fierce battles will be streamed on U-NEXT.
[Distribution date and time]
July 27th (Saturday) 5pm Boys #1 Boys #2
August 3rd (Saturday) 5pm Women's #1
Saturday, August 10th 5pm Women's #2
Saturday, August 24th 5pm Men's #3
Saturday, August 31st 5pm Women's #3
September 7th (Saturday) 5pm Men's #4
Saturday, September 14th 5pm Women's #4
(Quoted from TBS TV release)
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Photo: Volleyball World
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