Alas Pilipinas drew the admiration of FIVB President Fabio Azevedo after the host nation delivered a few surprises in the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship during the preliminary phase.
Ranked the lowest at No. 89 among the 32 teams at the start of the tournament, Alas stunned Egypt with a four-set victory in their Pool A match before narrowly falling short of a five-set win against Iran that would have secured them a ticket to the Round of 16.
Shortly after Alas’ exit, Azevedo spoke highly of their performance.
“Hey, those guys, they rock. I would say that those guys, they were brilliant. It was the most amazing surprise we got here during the world championship,” he said.
“Those boys, they are legends in the country. They are heroes. And they must be celebrated,” he added, noting that the squad’s victory over Egypt boosted the Philippines to No. 77 in the world rankings.
Despite the heartbreak of their close loss to Iran, the FIVB president stressed that the Philippines must continue working to further develop the program.
More than just celebrating the current players, Azevedo believes their dream run will inspire the next generation of Filipino athletes.
“Keep going. Keep playing. Keep engaging. [To the] new generation, play our sport. Whatever kind of volleyball, whatever kind of action of keeping a ball in the air is considered our sport,” he said.
“So to the young generation, be inspired by your national team. Be assured that very soon you can be playing those big events everywhere in the world. Sport has the power of bringing people together. And togetherness and collaboration are everything we need for the future. So keep going.”
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