Canadian men's volleyball team falls to Cuba in Olympic qualifier final

Canada's men's volleyball team fell 3-1 to Cuba in the final of continental qualifications for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics on Saturday in Moncton, N.B.

Set scores were 25-21, 25-23, 23-25, 25-22, as Cuba earned the continental spot for its first trip to the Olympics since the 2016 Games.

Canada had defeated Mexico 3-0 in Friday's semifinal.

The Canadians also finished runner-up to the Olympic-host United States earlier in the week in the NORCECA volleyball championship to earn a 2027 World Cup berth.

"It's super disappointing," Canada’s libero Landon Currie said. "I thought we came out really strong and all of a sudden, at the flip of a switch, Cuba came out swinging and we didn't really have an answer for them. 

"They picked up their serve and scored a decent amount of aces on us. At the end of the day, I'm proud of this group and I love these guys to death. Our path to LA gets more difficult but we're not out and we're going to keep fighting until we get there.

Stephen Maar led Canada with 22 points, with 20 attacks and two blocks. Captain Eric Loeppky chipped in 14 points.

Marlon Yant Herrera paced the Olympic-bound Cubans with 25 points.