22ND AFRICAN CUP OF CLUBS’ CHAMPIONS
AL-AHLY WON THE CUP AND QUALIFIED TO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Al-Ahly men team of Egypt continued the success of Egyptian volleyball in the last two years, as they won the 22nd African Cup of Clubs’Champions to qualify to the world championship. Al-Ahly defeated Olympique de Kelibia of Tunis in the final 3/0 (25/15-33/31-27/25). FAP of Cameroon won the bronze medal defeating its home team Port volley de Douala 3/0 (25/17-25/23-25/20). Al-Ahly men became the seventh Egyptian team to qualify to a world competition after Men, Women, Men U-21, Boys U-19, Girls U-18 and Ahly club- women teams, which is a record in Africa.
Al-Ahly won all its matches in the competition and lost only three sets in six matches. Although Ahly won three sets in row in the final against Kelibia, but it was a decisive match specially the second set, which was the strongest in the ten days’ tour. The winner started the match with the most experienced players, thus they won the first set easily 25/15 in only 17 minutes. The great performance of the spiker Hamdy El-Safi and Ayman Roshdy made the organizers to lead easily. The second set was the most exciting in the championship as a whole as Kelibia improved the block by both Chekili Med Selim and Gara Meldi. They were leading after the first technical time out till 24/23 when Ahly players adjust the block and improve the spiking by Ayman Foad and Usama Komsan to win 33/31. In the third set again Kelibia led the points in both technical time out after good spikes from the only forign player in the competition, the Yogoslavian Dragan Syetozarevic. Kelibia was narrow to win the set when they lead 23/21, but due to service faults Ahly won the set 27/25 in 27 minutes. They have got the fourth local and international trophy this season after the Egyptian league and cup as well as the Arab championship of Clubs’ Champions.
FAP, the black hoarse of this competition won the bronze medal easily after defeating the depressed Port players 3/0 in 1:10 h with FAP player Baliaba Dobald as the superstar of the match. Both Cameroon teams insured their country revolution in volleyball and gave a worning that their national team formed mostly of both teams will be one of the favorite in the coming African Nations’ Championship in August 2003