The new signing for the Italian powerhouse Cucine Lube Civitanova, Antonin Klimes, joins Aleksandar and Simeon Nikolov as the new U22 European champion. Just hours after Lube officially announced the signing of the 20-year-old Czech middle blocker on a three-year contract, he reached a historic title with his national team at the European Championship in Albufeira (Portugal).
The Czech Republic defeated Poland 3-1 (25:27, 27:25, 25:20, 25:13) in the final this evening and for the first time in its history won the European title in this age category. Klimes finished the match with 9 points and made an important contribution to his team's success.
The final started better for the Poles, who dramatically edged out the first set with a 27:25 score. However, the Czechs were not discouraged and responded with the same result in the second set. It was then that blocking became one of their strongest weapons – the Czech Republic scored seven block points, and Klimes contributed with three successful blocks.
The third set proved to be the turning point in the match. At 20:20, the Czech team made a run of five consecutive points, closing the set 25:20 and taking full control of the match. In the fourth set, the Czech Republic dominated from the start, built a solid lead, and after a convincing 25:13, deservedly reached the European title.
On their way to the final, the Czechs also pulled off one of the most impressive comebacks in the tournament. In the semifinals, they eliminated Israel 3-2 (21:25, 40:42, 25:20, 25:23, 15:9), after trailing by 0-2 sets. The second set concluded with an exceptionally rare 42:40 in favor of the Israelis, but this did not break the Czech team.
In the decisive tie-break, the Czech Republic already dictated the events on the court, and it was Antonin Klimes who scored the last point of the match with a block, ending the dramatic comeback. In this semifinal, Vaclav Seidl finished with 32 points, captain Matej Pastrnak added 30, and Klimes was once again among the key figures at the net.
Thus, the young Czech international arrives at Lube with the confidence of a European champion and a member of the tournament's All-Star Team.
The middle blocker, born in 2005, is 208 cm tall and comes to Civitanova after winning a championship title in the Czech Extraliga with VK CEZ Karlovarsko. Before that, he won the Czech Cup with Black Volley Beskydy, and is already part of the Czech men's national team, with whom he played in the semifinals against Bulgaria at the 2025 World Championship in the Philippines. In the new season, Klimes will be a teammate of the two Bulgarian internationals Aleksandar and Simeon Nikolov in one of the most ambitious projects in the Italian SuperLega.
photos:cev.eu
