The 2013 Men’s European Volleyball Championships draw to a close Sunday at the Parken Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark. Russia and Italy dispute the continental crown and decide which country is the ultimate European volleyball superpower in 2013.

Russia and Italy hacked out similar four-set victories in the semifinals against worthy final four opponents to advance to the gold medal match.

The Russian spikers defeated defending Euro champs Serbia, 25-19, 24-26, 25-23, 25-15 while the Italians beat Bulgaria, 19-25, 25-22, 25-15, 25-22 to set-up the Russia-Italy final, the 3rd meeting of these nations in the championship round.

Italy defeated Russia in 1999 in Vienna, Austria, and then in 2005 in Rome, Italy, and has a total of 6 gold medals and 11 medals haul (3 silver, 2 bronze) in the European Volleyball Championships.

However, Russia is still the winningest country in EuroVolley history. The Russians have a 20-medal haul in its 28-year history with 12 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze medals.

Russia head coach Andrey Voronkov credited his team’s defense in the victory over the Serbians.

“I think we played a good match today and our main concern was to deal with Atanasijevic and his serves and spikes. We were also concerned about our serve and reception. I am very glad that we played in this special stadium with a nice atmosphere and that we can decide ourselves if we are crowned champions.” said Voronkov in an interview with eurovolley2013.dk.

The 46-year-old mentor also handled Lokomotiv Novosibrisk in the Russian Super League.

Five players scored 10 points or more for the Russians, led by Nikolay Pavlov's 19 points and Dmitriy Muserskiy's 17.

For Italy, Luca Vettori (21) and Emanuel Birarelli (15) were the leaders for the Mauro Berruto-led squad vs. Bulgaria.

Meanwhile, Serbia and Bulgaria will aim to salvage a bronze medal in their campaign when they meet in the curtain-raiser.

2013 Men’s European Volleyball Championship Live Streaming and Schedule
 (Links posted once available)

Parken Arena, Copenhagen - Sept 29, 2013 (Sunday)

Championship
Russia vs. Italy

Battle for 3rd
Bulgaria vs. Serbia