For a brief, shining moment, Angiolino Frigoni and Alas Pilipinas were living a dream.
The Philippines came agonizingly close to a place in the Round of 16, threatening to become the tournament’s biggest surprise at the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship.
Their charge was guided by none other than seasoned mentor Angiolino Frigoni, whose experience helped transform the squad into a competitive force on the world stage.
On Thursday night, as the curtain fell on the host country’s campaign, the 71-year-old Italian remained a voice of reason and pride amid heartbreak.
“I am very proud. We improved a lot; we showed that we can play good volleyball. Thank you to all the fans who came here because they supported us very much,” Frigoni said.
While he admitted he wished for a more favorable ending, Frigoni took solace in how Alas Pilipinas rose to the occasion.
“I’m pity in a way because we lost while we were in a dream. And then they woke up just one point before the dream was finished. But that’s life; that’s the life of the sport. Still, I believe that we played with skills, with power, with heart, with the mind at every point — but not with how they finished,” he expressed.
“I would have preferred losing this match 15-10 or 15-8. But to lose this way… it’s very, very painful. I’m still very proud of them.”
Even Iran’s head coach, fellow Italian Roberto Piazza, praised Frigoni for shaping Alas Pilipinas into a formidable squad.
“You know, we are friends,” Frigoni said matter-of-factly.
“All coaches believe that player improvement depends on the coach. I am one of them, but we just have to give them a way to do things. After that, it all depends on them.
“There’s no one player who doesn’t want to get better. They won’t improve if they don’t want to,” he added, a seasoned mentor reflecting on a journey that, while ending in defeat, was rich with lessons and fleeting moments of glory.
#WATCH: While praise poured in for him after Alas Pilipinas’ #MWCH2025 run, Angiolino Frigoni insists the credit belongs to the players 🇵🇭🏐#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/Qz7Jw9wJUc
📹 @justinvalencia_ /Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/MJUpLYnM1U
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) September 18, 2025
