Sofia, Bulgaria, July 7, 2012 – World No. 4 Poland will take on Olympic champions USA in the final of the FIVB World League 2012 after they won their semifinals against Bulgaria and Cuba respectively on Saturday at the Arena Armeec in Sofia.

USA, ranked sixth in the world, edged Cuba 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-23) in the first semifinal to record their 14th win in 21 matches against their neighbours including six in the last seven games. The second semifinal saw Poland beat hosts Bulgaria for the eighth time in the last 11 matches, winning 3-0 (25-23 25-20 25-18) in front of Bulgaria President Rossen Plevneliev and 11,000 passionate fans.

“We are very happy with this victory,” Poland captain Marcin Mozdzonek said. “It is the first semifinal in the World League that we have won so we are very excited and we cannot wait for tomorrow. It is a historical moment for all of us. Although the Bulgarians served really well and despite the atmosphere in the hall, we handled the situation.”

Earlier Mathew Anderson, who scored 13 points in USA’s victory, said: “It was a good match, we played pretty well and followed the match plan that we had prepared. Our defensive action after the Cuban blocks worked and we hit really well in transition which gave Cuba a hard time.” 

The 2012 World League Final at 20:55 (local time) on Sunday will be the first time both sides have met not only in a World League final but in a final of any FIVB competition. It is the first World League final appearance for Poland, who have a 1974 World Championship and a 1976 Olympic title to their name, having previously recorded a best result of bronze at last year’s competition.

USA will be hoping for a repeat of 2008 when they won the World League and Olympic titles. In total USA have a World League, a World Cup, three Olympic titles and a World Championship crown to their name.

Head to head, Poland lead 13:10 including a straight sets win at last year’s World Cup however the only previous medal encounter between the two countries was a play off for the 2007 World League bronze medal which USA won 3-1.

Meanwhile the bronze medal match at 17:30 will feature 1998 champions Cuba, who will be chasing their third World League bronze medal, and Bulgaria who have never stepped on the World League podium, boasting a best finish of fourth in 1994, 2004 and 2006. Cuba lead the head-to-head record 20:13.

For full match reports, press conference quotes, statistics and photos visit:
http://www.fivb.org/EN/volleyball/competitions/WorldLeague/2012/LiveScore.asp

Top Blocking Performances
7 – Georgi Bratoev of Bulgaria v Germany (July 4 - Finals)
7 – Lucas Saatkamp of Brazil v Poland (May 18)
7 – Russell Holmes of USA v Korea (May 19)
7 – José Trèfle of France v Korea (May 20)
7 - Rolando Cepeda of Cuba v Japan (June 15)

Top Blocking Performances by team
21 – France against Korea (May 20)
19 – Russia against Serbia (June 30)
19 – USA against France (June 30)
18 – Russia against Japan (May 19)
18 – USA against Italy (July 1)
17 – Germany against Bulgaria, Bulgaria against Germany (July 4 – Finals) and USA against Germany (July 5 – Finals)

Top Serving Performances
7 – Wilfredo Leon of Cuba v Russia (June 17)
5 – Olli-Pekka Ojansivu of Finland v Poland (May 19)
5 – Aleksandar Atanasijevic of Serbia v Japan (May 20)
5 – Wilfredo Leon of Cuba v Brazil (July 4 - Finals)

Top Serving Performances by team
11 – Brazil v Finland (May 20)
11 – Portugal v Argentina (June 17)
8 – Cuba v Brazil (July 4 – Finals)
 
Highest scorer by week
Round 1: Gavin Schmitt, 33 (Canada v Brazil)
Round 2: Mikko Oivanen, 33 (Finland v Canada)
Round 3: Tsevetan Sokolov, 33 (Bulgaria v Germany)
Round 4: Tsevetan Sokolov, 29 (Bulgaria v Germany)
Finals: Bartosz Kurek, 25 (Poland v Brazil)

Highest set score
Round 1: Canada v Finland, 33-31
Round 2: Poland v Canada, Canada v Finland, Germany v Bulgaria 28-26
Round 3: Italy v USA, 27-29
Round 4: USA v Korea, 32-30
Finals: Bulgaria v Germany, 29-27

Highest Scoring matches
Round 1: Italy v Korea, 3-2 (24-26, 27-25, 21-25, 29-27, 18-16) – 238 points
Round 2: Poland v Brazil, 3-2 (26-24, 23-25, 25-23, 23-25, 15-10) – 219 points
Round 3: Serbia v Japan, 3-2 (23-25, 25-19, 19-25, 25-19, 15-10) – 205 points
Round 4: France v Italy, 3-2 (29-31, 25-23, 25-18, 21-25, 15-12) – 224 points
Finals: USA v Germany, 3-2 (20-25, 25-21, 21-25, 25-20, 16-14) – 212 points