Playing on a home court in the 5,000 seater La Guaira Stadium in the capital city, Venezuela extended the final to a tiebreak and led 10-9 at one stage before their rivals fought back.

After levelling the scores at 11-11, Cristian Poglajen used his powerful serve to give his side a three-point advantage, with the Argentinians pressing ahead to win 25-12, 22-25, 25-12, 25-27, 15-12 to secure their place at Rio 2016. 

Argentina’s Ezequiel Palacios topped the scoring chart with 19 points, while Willner Rivas managed 18 for Venezuela.

The Venezuelans will now head for the playoff tournament, due to take place in Japan from May 14 to June 5.

They will be joined by Chile, who secured a thrilling 34-36, 25-20, 25-18, 28-30, 15-10 victory over Colombia, despite losing a marathon first-set.

The duo will be joined at the qualifier by the top three Asian teams in the FIVB world rankings, as well as the second and third-placed teams from the European qualifiers, and the second-placed team from the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation qualifying. 

Brazil, traditionally South America's strongest volleyball team, have secured an automatic Rio 2016 spot by virtue of being the host nation.

“We had a great time on the court,” said Venezuela captain Kervin Pinerua.

“Although we had some anxiety as we were playing on home soil for the first time in front of our families, friends and the Venezuelan people who supported us to the end.

"I think we did a good job in a tough competition.

“We missed qualifying for Rio by a whisker but I can say that our dream is more alive than ever.

“It’s still possible because we will travel to the playoffs with a burning desire to bring good news to our country.

"Expectations are high, but we have the strength to face this new challenge, the playoffs."

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