Pools and venues for third-round World Champs qualifiers confirmed

The venues and the final pool composition for the third round World Champs qualifiers scheduled for January 3-5, 2014 were confirmed on Wednesday by the CEV. The last step of the qualification process for the 2014 World Champs will see 20 teams/gender in action; these 20 teams were assigned to five pools of four teams each.

The venues and the final pool composition for the third round World Champs qualifiers scheduled for January 3-5, 2014 were confirmed on Wednesday by the CEV. The last step of the qualification process for the 2014 World Champs will see 20 teams/gender in action; these 20 teams were assigned to five pools of four teams each. 

The winner of each tournament plus the second-ranked team with the best score across all five pools will get the right to represent Europe at the FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship Poland 2014 thereby joining hosts Poland, 2013 European champions Russia and 2013 CEV VELUX EuroVolley silver medallists Italy. As for the women’s competition, the first-placed of each third round qualifier as well as the two second-ranked teams with the best score across all pools will join hosts Italy, 2013 European champions Russia and Germany, runners-up of the 2013 EuroVolley, for the much anticipated FIVB Women’s Volleyball World Championships Italy 2014.     

The pool composition for the men’s third-round qualifiers reads as follows:   

Pool I in Opava (CZE): Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Cyprus 
Pool J in Nis (SRB): Serbia, Portugal, Slovenia, F.Y.R. of Macedonia 
Pool K in Ludwigsburg (GER): Germany, Turkey, Estonia, Croatia 
Pool L in Nantes (FRA): France, Spain, Belgium, Belarus   
Pool M in Poprad (SVK): Finland, Slovakia, Greece, Ukraine     

The pool composition for the women’s third-round qualifiers reads as follows:   

Pool I in Ankara (TUR): Turkey, Romania, Ukraine, Cyprus 
Pool J in Baku (AZE): Serbia, Azerbaijan, Israel, Estonia 
Pool K in Lodz (POL): Poland, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland 
Pool L in Rovinj (CRO): Netherlands, France, Croatia, Hungary   
Pool M in Varna (BUL): Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Belarus