Younger brother Moni Nikolov, Grozdanov, Garcia, Lantsoght and Bottolo are the other statistical leaders at Philippines 2025.
Aleks Nikolov celebrates with his teammates
Bulgaria, who were silver medalists at the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship, impressively topped four of the seven official individual statistical rankings during the competition. Three of these top positions were achieved by members of the same family: the Nikolov brothers, Aleksandar and Simeon. Twenty-one-year-old outside hitter Aleks Nikolov was by far the tournament`s leading scorer and best attacker, while his eighteen-year-old brother Moni emerged as the best setter. Bulgaria’s captain, Aleks Grozdanov, distinguished himself as the best blocker. Among other leaders, USA’s Gabriel Garcia headlined the best servers chart, Belgium’s Gorik Lantsoght came out on top of the best diggers ranking, and Mattia Bottolo, from the world champion Italian squad, was named the best receiver.
Aleksandar Nikolov`s Remarkable Performance
With an outstanding 173 points to his name, Aleks Nikolov comfortably led the individual scoring ranking, boasting a substantial 67-point advantage over his closest rivals, Belgian opposite Ferre Reggers and his Czech counterpart Patrik Indra. Nikolov delivered his most impactful scoring performance in the semifinal against Czechia, where he registered an impressive 31 points.
Aleks Nikolov also proved to be the undeniable leader in the best attackers ranking, achieving 154 spike kills, significantly ahead of Reggers and Indra, who each recorded 93. His exceptional play earned him a well-deserved place on the World Championship Dream Team.
Moni Nikolov in action
Other Statistical Leaders Shine
Talented playmaker and rising star Moni Nikolov secured the top position in the best setters chart with 236 successful sets. His strong showing in Sunday’s final allowed him to surpass the previous leader, Iran’s 22-year-old Arshia Behnezhad, who finished second with 222 successful sets in five games. World champion and Dream Team setter Simone Giannelli of Italy climbed to third place in this ranking with 200 sets.
Aleks Grozdanov, the Bulgarian captain and one of the Dream Team middle blockers, surged to the top of the best blockers ranking with 18 kill blocks. Italy’s middle Roberto Russo followed in second place with 16 blocks, while Slovenia’s middle Jan Kozamernik ranked third with 15 blocks from only four matches.
The 2025 world champions, Italy, also claimed a top spot, with outside hitter Mattia Bottolo leading the best receivers ranking with 40 successful receptions. His Czech counterpart Lukas Vasina took the runner-up position with 38 successful receptions, and 22-year-old outside Luka Marttila of Finland managed to secure a spot in the top three with 37, accumulated in just four matches.
Mattia Bottolo in action
American opposite Gabi Garcia maintained his leading position in the best servers chart until the end of the competition, firing 17 aces in five matches played. With five aces in the gold medal match alone, Italian opposite Yuri Romano accumulated 15 total to finish second in this ranking. The third place was shared by Turkish outside Efe Mandiraci and Dutch opposite Michiel Ahyi, each with 13 aces.
Nineteen-year-old Belgian libero Gorik Lantsoght also successfully held onto his position at the top of the best diggers chart. He recorded 43 digs in five matches, placing him one dig ahead of the second-best defenders, his Turkish and Czech counterparts Berkay Bayraktar and Milan Monik.