How it unfolded
This was the first Olympics held under the rally-point system introduced in 1999, and its intensity showed within the first two sets. Cuba, chasing a third straight gold after 1992 and 1996, had already lost to Russia in five sets in pool play on September 18. The final's first set went to a grueling 25-27, and the second reached 32-34, both wars of attrition. Having dropped both sets, Cuba fell behind 0-2. The match turned from the third set. Mireya Luis's back-row attacking and middle blocker Regla Torres's quick attacks and blocking both came alive simultaneously, while Russia failed to recover the energy it had spent in the first two sets. Cuba split the next two sets 25-19 and 25-18, then closed out the decisive fifth set by a wide 15-7 margin. Torres, who had won her first gold at sixteen, was named tournament MVP at twenty-four with her third gold medal.
Why it still matters
This match completed the only three-peat in Olympic indoor volleyball history, one no team has managed to repeat since. It was also the first time the rally-point system's capacity for momentum swings was on full display. The 32-34 second set followed by three straight dominant sets compressed, into a single match, just how sharply stamina and psychology can flip a contest when every rally counts as a point.