FATE swung on opposite directions for Philippine crowd darlings USA and Japan as they began their respective campaigns in the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship on Saturday.
The Americans came out swinging to begin Pool D with a quick 25-20, 25-21, 25-14 win over Colombia at the Mall of Asia Arena.
23-year-old FIVB Worlds debutant Ethan Champlin took over for a depleted Team USA sans star spikers TJ Defalco and Matt Anderson with 17 points built on 12 attacks, three aces and two blocks.
Fan-favorite skipper Micah Christenson produced 23 excellent sets in his first game back after skipping USA’s Volleyball Nations League (VNL) campaign earlier this year to take a brief hiatus from the sport.
“When I took a break, I took a break just from volleyball but I was still able to use it. We never really have an off-season in international volleyball if you're playing for the national team,” he said.
“I took it really as a time to kind of build my body up and get it ready for not only this world championship, but professional seasons and other national team competitions to come.
“I feel physically pretty good and then I joined the team right after VNL to be able to not only play volleyball and get connection with the guys, but also just personally get to know each other.”
Heartbreak for Japan
It wasn’t the same winning story for world No. 5 Japan after being dealt a shock 19-25, 23-25, 19-25 loss at the hands of 26th-ranked Turkiye at the Smart Araneta Coliseum
The beloved Ryujin Nippon side failed to secure the victory in front of 7,518 fans, mostly in their favor, dropping to an early 0-1 hole in Pool G.
Ran Takahashi was held to just four points, although atoned by a better defensive performance with 10 digs and seven reception.
Skipper Yuki Ishikawa hit double figures with 10 markers and a pair of digs and receptions, behind Kento Miyaura’s 13-point game to pace the stunning result.
“It was a very important match that we lost. We have to change our minds Turkiye was playing well, so it was a tough match for us but, next match, we have to focus and improve,” Ishikawa said.
Takahashi added: “We played normal — not so good, not so bad, but we need more confidence and we have to play and push more until the end.”
Turkish winger Ramazan Efe Mandiraci had their offense on lock with 17 points, 10 attacks, a whopping five service aces and two blocks.
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