Posts by jist

Watch out for Kim Hill! She is going to be a special talent. Just 23 years old but she has so much potential. Despite being 6'4 she can receive and play defense. She is good in attacking also and will just improve!

Ze Roberto This Brazilian attitude just amazes me. Oh well, the match is in Brazil so whatever. Rio 2016 will be a nightmare for all teams!

Harmotto is one of the best MBs in the world right now. She is just amazing.

Finally, I was able to saw a replay of the final match between Russia and Brazil.

What can I say..Just wow! The Russians turned it around when the Brazilians thought the Gold is in their hands.

Maxim Mikhaylov...I admire him not only for being such a world-class athlete but for being so humble despite the win. Now I'm adding him on my favorite players' list.

CONGRATULATIONS RUSSIA!!!!

Maxim Mikhaylov has got to be the best player on the planet right now. What an awesome game vs Brazil. Bravo Russia!!! What a sweet revenge for their women counterparts.

Sad ending to a career by Giba and Serginho. Thank you for the many years of exciting volleyball.

What about Dante? Is he retiring?

I forgot about Sanja Newcombe. USAFAN, any opinion about her? Any chance for her to be on the Team A?

Quote from J-STAR

We have a girl named Kanani Danielson, who plays at outside hitter, that may be one of the strongest candidates for a spot on the team. The way she plays is just outstanding. Take a look at her on youtube and see by yourself.

Kanani is a very good player. In fact I think she will play for the National Team in the future. My concern is that she is only 5'10 and it could be a problem internationally.

Quote from joanamss

I think USa will do quite well in next years.

I wished Logan could stay for at least more couple years...but I hope Larson can become a new Logan Tom, I think she has the quality to do that.

I am actually hoping for Logan to stay for at least one more Olympics (and 2014 World Championships).

I think the new coach will definitely call her back to the team but it all depends on Logan. Maybe she will take a break from NT duties for a couple of years and be back for her 5th and final Olympics. Maybe..

Regarding Larson, its difficult to match the contributions of Logan definitely but Jordan is clearly on track of taking Tom's reign. Jordan is still 25 she still has a lot of room for improvement.

Quote from kondzio

And who will you take for team as libero: Davis proved that she sin't enough for team, Sykora is too old althoguh she can play 2-3 years more, what do you think about Miyashiro? She can be future, is there any talented libero in USA except Tamari?

Miyashiro should be the starting libero for the team. Not to take anything away from Davis' previous accomplishments but she is clearly a weakness for Team USA.

Another one that is also on the gym for Team USA is Kayla Banwarth. Teammate of Jordan Larson in College.

But one libero I am excited to play for Team USA is Natalie Hagglund, the starting libero for the Junior Nat'l Team of USA in 2011 World Junior Championships. She won the Best Libero on that tournament. She's a lot of fun to watch. She is now a Junior in college so she should be graduating by 2014.

I like the future of the team built around Hooker-Akinradewo-Harmotto-Larson-A. Glass-Hodge. They could still play for 2 more Olympics if they want to.

The other players have the potential to be very good but they will need International experience to be able to keep up with the best teams of the world.

With so many players retiring from most NTs, the future looks really exciting who goes on top and who will fall down.

Berg, Haneef and Scott-Arruda retiring... Logan Tom not sure. But here's the possible list of players that may be lined up in the future for Team USA:

OH - Larson, Hodge, Richards, Barboza, Klineman

MB - Akinradewo, Harmotto, Gibbmeyer, Paolini, Arielle Brown

Opp - Hooker, Fawcett, Blair Brown, Engle

Setter - Thompson, Glass, Lloyd

Libero - Davis, Miyashiro, Banwarth

Quote from yates

Wow, is Hugh leaving the team?

He is leaving the team. He will be coaching a team from NCAA... University of Minnesota. Minnesota is the home state of his wife, Wiz Bachman Mccutcheon. I think this was announced nearly 2 years ago.

So definitely there's a new Coach for Team USA..

This is very sad. I am extremely sad for the veterans of this team most importantly to Logan Tom. Well-done Logan!

Congratulations to Brazil! They clearly outplayed the US team at the most important part of the tournament. Everyone played really well but I have to commend Dani Lins for a job well-done. To me, she is the MVP of the finals. Now Brazil has finally found the best replacement for Fofao. I expect all 12 players will be gunning for a shot at 3rd consecutive gold when their country hosts the Olympics in 2016.

Okay, Team USA. Its been a pleasure watching you the past 4 years. They've dominated the sport despite having new faces on the team. They brought honor and pride to USA. I'm just very sad at this loss but I'm extremely proud of their efforts....Going undefeated until the finals was something only few teams in the sport have achieved. I will continue to cheer for the team. GO USA!

I salute Danielle Scott-Arruda, Tayyiba Haneef-Park and Lindsey Berg for the contributions they've given to the sport and for Team USA.

But I have to give my utmost respect to the player who truly deserves a gold medal. From being a National champion in Stanford, to becoming the youngest volleyball Olympian to have competed for the US Team, numerous Grand Prix titles, Runner up in World Champs, World Cup and Olympic Games. For being the silent leader of this team the past 12 years. LOGAN TOM. You are my hero. I am extremely privileged to have witnessed such a complete player in the many years that I've been following volleyball. She was the reason why I became a volleyball fan. Thank you Logan! Truly, a legend of the sport.

While I am hoping to see her in 2014 World Championships, I think Logan is done with the National Team.

Quote from Bruna.

Really? After THAT gold medal, you still think a team needs to prove something?

And the "only gold" is the most important gold EVER.

Just ask Gamova and Sokolova if they would like to trade their 2 world championships golds medals (ok, all the medals they won in their career ) for JUST ONE olympic gold.

I know what they would aswer, ask them

Display More

Wow, this is just

Is this the culture in Brazil? I remembered USA players being booed in their country, Ze Roberto and his players saying something bad about Russian players. Now, an ignorant poster putting down Gamova and Sokolova's achievements.

Just annoying.

That Italian Captain Christian Savani is a fine looking man.

Japan-Korea - 2-3

Brazil-USA - 1-3

Quote from aXeLbEn12

win or lose, making it to the finals is already a big achievement already.

also, even though USA has beaten brazil in the grand prix finals 3 times in a row, brazil HAVE beaten them just last year, at the semis 3-1, with most OH unavailable due to injury (mari, paula, jacqueline). an ailing natalia actually beaten them, having 21 points, if i'm not mistaken. i think people have forgotten that USA never truly met a complete brazil team, with many brazilian players unavailable due to injuries or underperforming (due to, again, previous injuries).

by the way, i still miss MARI. she could've peaked together with sheilla here in this olympics. i still favor her over paula. how i wish natalia is at full health. mari and natalia may be terrible at floor defense, but their offense is a NIGHTMARE for any opposing team (in addition to mari's monstrous blocking abilities). the one position always available for brazil is the number of calibre OPPOSITES. sheilla, mari, tandara, natalia. i also wish ze considered bringing sassa. her contribution to the team has always been underrated but of all brazilian players, she is the most stable...

I understand you are a fan of Brazil but...

This is unfair for the US Team. Lets give credit where credit is due. The past 5 successes against Brazil has nothing to do with the unavailability of their OHs be it because of injury or underperformance ( ). The US team just clearly outplayed their opponents. Prior to the loss of Brazil to the USA in the preliminaries, they even lost to USA's Team B in the Grand Prix finals. That tells you something is not working for this team. What seems to be the problem of Brazil is not the injuries of its OHs but: 1). Players getting old, performance are on a decline and underperformance WILL NEVER be an excuse on this level. Take for example Fabi the libero. She's not the same all-world libero 5 years ago. 2). Setter. There's been at least 4 rotating group of setters for this squad in the past 4 years. 3). Ze Roberto's odd choices for his squad.

And lastly, I don't think Mari is a monster blocker nor she is a nightmare in the offense for the opposing team. She is streaky, but inconsistent. Natalia is a fine player but I think its a stretch to call her a nightmare. Had it been Thaisa or Sheilla,

Thank you so much Miami!

USA vs Korea (SEMIS) please