Lausanne, Switzerland, July 7, 2017 - Japan play the Dominican Republic Saturday in Apeldoorn with a strong tradition behind them head-to-head against the Caribbean side. Japan have not lost to the Dominican Republic since 2008 and enjoy a 7-1 lead in the series between the two sides in the history of the FIVB World Grand Prix.
Head-to-Head• Japan have lost only one of their previous eight World Grand Prix matches against Dominican Republic, the 3-0 defeat in 2008.
• Dominican Republic have won only four sets in the other seven World Grand Prix encounters with Japan, the 3-1 losses in 2010 and 2011 and the five-set defeat in 2006.
• Their last meeting came at the 2016 Olympic Qualification Tournament. Japan won in straight sets and eventually qualified for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where they reached the quarterfinals.
Dominican Republic• On Friday, Dominican Republic suffered a 3-0 defeat at Netherlands to start off their 2017 World Grand Prix season.
• This ended a seven match victory streak for them in the World Grand Prix. Last season, Dominican Republic won promotion to Group 1.
• Dominican Republic have now started each of their last five World Grand Prix seasons with a defeat.
Japan• Japan started their 2017 World Grand Prix campaign with a 3-2 victory against Thailand on Friday.
• Last season, Japan started with a victory, but then lost four on the trot. They also lost the final two matches of their 2016 World Grand Prix season.
• For the first time since 2014, Japan won a World Grand Prix match that was decided in a fifth set. They had lost five such matches in a row.