Poland qualified for the semifinals by defeating Slovenia 3:1 (25-20, 24-26, 25-19, 25-20), thus returning to medal contention after a 44-year hiatus. Their first appearance at this stage of the competition was in Moscow in 1980, when they finished fourth – the other happened four years earlier, in Montreal, where they went all the way to become Olympic champions.
"The White-Reds" overcame the quarterfinal nightmare, where they had been stopped in the last five editions of the Olympics (Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio 2016, and Tokyo 2020). This time, the "black cat" Slovenia failed to cross the path of "Polish дружина" towards the medal fight.
The semifinals will take place on Wednesday, and Poland's opponents will be determined in the match between the USA and Brazil, which will be played later today.
Wilfredo Leon showed why he is Poland's star, scoring 20 points (five aces). Captain Bartosz Kurek, who is the only player in the team who played in the last three Olympics, added another 19 points for the victory (1 ace).
In their first Olympic appearance, Slovenia managed to reach the knockout stage, which happens very rarely. Klemen Čebulj and captain Tine Urnaut registered 16 and 13 points (1 block and 2 aces) respectively.
