China have been ranked as
third seeds and placed in the same pool as host country Italy and fourth seed
Cuba for the Women's Volleyball Grand Prix Final Round.
The other group competing in the final round consists of first seed Brazil,
second seed Russia and Asian powerhouse Japan.
China secured third place in the overall rankings after scoring three more
victories over the weekend for a total score of 17 points. The team, lead by
coach Chen Zhonghe, only placed after Russia because of its inferior points
ratio.
Brazil was the only team to defeat China during the qualifying rounds. China
has a good chance of making it through to the semi-finals on Saturday as it will
not face Brazil in the group matches.
Russia is returning to the competition after a one year break, making it the
only team in the World Grand Prix Final Six that did not play in the final
rounds last year. The team have more than made up for lost time, putting in a
strong performance to finish the preliminary rounds in second place, just behind
the ever-dominant Brazil.
