Gold is going to Spain! The curtain at the 4th FINA World Women's Youth Water Polo Championships in Belgrade, capital of Serbia, is down, after Sunday’s finals and the gold-medal match between two European teams, Spain and Italy.
The new world Women's Youth champions are the Spanish players who managed in the final a one-goal advantage over very strong Italy. The Spanish team deserved the trophy as they were the only team in the World Championships that hasn't lost a single match. In addition, they also had the best player in the tournament, Alejandra Aznar. Italy had its biggest moment when it won the quarter-finals against the US team, who came to Belgrade as a candidate for a medal and left in the seventh position.
The Greek national team won the bronze medal, thus confirming the good shape of the sport in the country. Two weeks ago, the Greek men's team (U-18) won gold at the FINA World Junior Championships in the Hungarian city of Szombathely, while in Belarus, also this Sunday, the Men’s European Championship (U-19) also crowned the Hellenic squad.
Individual Awards at the 4th FINA Women’s Youth Water Polo Championships Belgrade 2018:
Best Scorer: Maria Myriokefalitaki (Greece) - 29 goals
Best Goalkeeper: Caterina Banchelli (Italy)
MVP Tournament: Alejandra Aznar (Spain)
FINAL RANKING:
1. SPAIN
2. Italy
3. Greece
4. Australia
5. Netherlands
6. Hungary
7. USA
8. Russia
9. New Zealand
10. Canada
11. Kazakhstan
12. Uzbekistan
13. Brazil
14. South Africa
15. Serbia
16. Argentina