The MEVZA Women's League Final Four, which was scheduled to take place in Cyprus on March 4 and 5, has been officially canceled. The decision was made due to serious security concerns related to the escalation of tensions and military actions in the Middle East in recent days. This was announced on the organization's official website.
The MEVZA management informed that the safety of the players, coaching staffs, and all participants in the tournament is an absolute priority. For this very reason, the organizers have assessed that, given the current situation, hosting the tournament in Cyprus cannot be guaranteed with the necessary level of security.
The organization thanked all clubs, partners, and stakeholders for their understanding and cooperation in the current situation.
Which teams were supposed to play in the Final Four
Four teams reached the final phase of the tournament – OK OTP Banka Branik Maribor (Slovenia), OK Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), HAOK Mladost Zagreb (Croatia), and Lemesos Volleyball (Cyprus).
According to the preliminary schedule, the semi-finals were to feature:
OK OTP Banka Branik Maribor – OK Dinamo Zagreb
Lemesos Volleyball – HAOK Mladost Zagreb
The winners of the two matches were supposed to face each other in the final, and the losers were to play a third-place match. However, following the cancellation decision, these matches will not take place on the planned dates.
What is MEVZA
MEVZA is an abbreviation for Middle European Volleyball Zonal Association. It is a regional structure of the European Volleyball Confederation that organizes club tournaments and competitions for national teams in various age categories.
The federations of Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Israel, and Cyprus are members of the association. Tournaments under its aegis provide an opportunity for clubs from the region to participate in additional international matches outside of national championships and European club tournaments.
Further decisions are expected
MEVZA specified that possible options for completing the competition will be discussed in the coming days – including new dates or a different format for the final phase.
The final decision regarding the fate of the tournament will be announced after the security situation in the region has been carefully analyzed.
photo: mevza.org
