Which nations have qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics volleyball tournament?

Seven of the twelve available women’s volleyball tournament slots in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, have already been booked. Six clinched their ticket through the recently concluded Olympic Qualifying tournament in China, Japan, and Poland.

The seventh qualifier, France, has already earned their spot as the hosts for next year’s sporting spectacle. Here are the other nations that will proudly wave their flag in the City of Light and the five likeliest teams that will join them.

United States and Poland clinch berths for Paris 2024

Of the six qualified teams, the United States has the most Olympic appearances, with 12. They’ve added number 13 after finishing on top of the Pool C tournament in Lodz, Poland. While the Americans and the host squad have identical 6-1 records, the Americans emerged on top due to a superior set ratio.

However, the Polish defeated the Americans during their head-to-head matchup in four sets. The host team suffered their only defeat against Thailand in five sets.

Meanwhile, Italy could have qualified if they defeated Poland in the final game of Pool C competitions. However, their opponents put home-court advantage to good use by winning in four sets.

Here’s how the Poland leg of the 2024 Summer Olympics women’s volleyball qualifying tournament ended:

1. United States – 6-1 – qualified for the 2024 Olympics
2. Poland – 6-1 – qualified for the 2024 Olympics
3. Italy – 5-2
4. Thailand – 4-3
5. Germany – 4-3
6. Slovenia – 2-5
7. Colombia – 1-6
8. South Korea – 0-7

Dominican Republic and Serbia clinched Olympic berths from the China pool

The Dominican Republic topped Pool A in Ningbo, China, with a 6-1 record. The defending NORCECA Champions qualified for France by defeating the Netherlands in five sets. It was a do-or-die battle because the Dutch would have made it to the Olympics if they had won.

Brayelin Martinez led the way for the Dominicans with 23 points, while Yonkaira Pena added 17. Gaila Gonzalez and Jineiry Martinez had 16 and 10 for the winners. Paris 2024 will be the fourth Olympic stint for the Dominican Republic women’s volleyball team after Athens 2004, London 2012, and Tokyo 2020.

Meanwhile, the two-time defending World Champions already clinched their spot with one game left. Thus, they still qualified even if they lost to the Chinese in the final match. While they ended up with an identical 5-2 record with Canada, the Serbians had the advantage in points and set ratio.

Coincidentally, the Serbians also defeated the Dutch to settle their Olympic ticket. Tijana Boskovic led the way with 20 points, while Sara Lozo and Maja Aleksic had 15 and 14. They will be making their fifth Olympic appearance.

Here’s how the Ningbo leg of the 2024 Summer Olympics women’s volleyball qualifying tournament ended:

1. Dominican Republic – 6-1 – qualified for the 2024 Olympics
2. Serbia – 5-2 – qualified for the 2024 Olympics
3. Canada – 5-2
4. China – 4-3
5. Netherlands – 4-3
6. Ukraine – 2-5
7. Czech Republic – 2-5
8. Mexico – 0-7

Turkey and Brazil are headed to Paris after dominating the opposition in Japan

The current top-ranked nation in women’s volleyball stamped their class by going undefeated in their Olympic qualifying leg. The Turkish squad dropped only three sets in seven wins to score the first ticket to Paris 2024.

Host team Japan, Peru, and Argentina were the only nations that got a set against them. They also defeated world number three Brazil in straight sets.

Despite that defeat, the Brazilians will join the Turks with a 6-1 mark. Their matchup eventually determined the top team in Pool B. Melissa Vargas led the way for Turkey with 19 points, while team captain Eda Erdem Dundar added 16. Hande Baladin (10) and Ebrar Karakurt (11) also finished with double-digit points.

Turkey will play in their third Summer Olympics, while Brazil will make its 12th appearance.

Here’s how the Tokyo leg of the 2024 Summer Olympics women’s volleyball qualifying tournament ended:

1. Turkey – 7-0 – qualified for the 2024 Olympics
2. Brazil – 6-1 – qualified for the 2024 Olympics
3. Japan – 5-2
4. Puerto Rico – 4-3
5. Argentina – 3-4
6. Belgium – 2-5
7. Bulgaria – 1-6
8. Peru – 0-7

Which teams will likely fill the five remaining 2024 Olympic women’s volleyball tournament spots?

The other competitors for the 2024 Summer Olympics will be chosen at the end of the 2024 Volleyball Nations League preliminary round. They will be selected based on world and continental rankings.

If the current rankings stay the same, Italy will be the first nation added to the list because they are number five in the world. The top four countries (Turkey, the United States, Brazil, and Serbia) have already qualified for the tournament.

China is ranked sixth globally and will also qualify as the top team in the Asian continent. Poland and the Dominican Republic are number 7 and 8, respectively. Therefore, Japan and the Netherlands get the next two spots. Kenya, ranked 21^st in the world, also gets in as the highest-ranked African nation.

France completes the cast of participating nations by being the host team. The French are 15th in the world, with Canada, Germany, Belgium, and Thailand in front of them. However, other teams can still compete for Olympic berths through their performance in the VNL.