Bulgarian middle blocker Nikolay Kurtev became French champion with Montpellier (MHSC VB). The team from Southern France won the final series against Stade Poitevin and deservedly lifted the trophy after a second victory.
In the decisive match, Montpellier overpowered Poitiers with a convincing 3:0(25:15, 25:17, 25:16) in front of over 2700 spectators at the "Chaban Delmas" Sports Palace.
Kurtev joined the Montpellier squad at a difficult moment in the season when two-time Olympic champion Nicolas Le Goff sustained an injury. The Bulgarian middle blocker, who arrived from Greek club PAOK, helped the team maintain stability at the net and stay in the fight for the trophy.
Interestingly, it was Le Goff who was named MVP of the Grand Final. The experienced French international played a phenomenal match, finishing with 12 points, 4 blocks, and an impressive 89% success rate in attack (8 successful attacks out of 9 attempts).

Together with Argentinian setter Matias Sanchez, he led Montpellier to the title.
For Nicolas Le Goff, this is his second French championship title with Montpellier, with the new triumph coming four years after the first. The impressive resume of the two-time Olympic champion also includes titles and cups in Germany, the German Supercup, as well as a trophy from the CEV Cup tournament.
Team captain Ezequiel Palacios also cemented his status as one of Montpellier's emblems. For the Argentinian international, this is his fourth trophy with the French club.
Another Olympic champion in the Montpellier squad, Quentin Jouffroy, also enriched his impressive resume. For the French outside hitter, this is his second French title in his career, eight years after his first. His collection also includes trophies from the CEV Cup and Challenge Cup tournaments.
An interesting point is that for French outside hitter Maxime Herveau, this championship triumph is the first in his career in the French elite, despite being 31 years old.
The hosts completely controlled the events on the court. After an even start to the first set, Montpellier scored a series of 6 consecutive points and quickly took the initiative. In the second set, Ezequiel Palacios, Simon Hirsch, and Tomas Lopez continued the pressure, while in the third set, Poitiers resisted until 16:16 before the champions finally closed out the match.
Thus, Montpellier won its ninth French championship title and its first in four years. We recall that national player Dimitar Dimitrov was part of the team last season.
For Nikolay Kurtev, this is a significant career success and further proof that Bulgarian volleyball players continue to have an important presence in some of Europe's strongest leagues.

photos: LVN.fr