Volleyball

The national women's volleyball team will compete at the Asian Women's Club Volleyball Championship from April 25 to May 2 in Vĩnh Phúc Province. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The national side will step in to replace domestic champions Geleximco Thái Bình at the Asian Women's Club Volleyball Championship, scheduled from April 25 to May 2 at the Vĩnh Phúc Province's Gymnasium, after the northern provincial team withdrew from the tournament.

Việt Nam will face club sides from Japan, Chinese Taipei, and Iran in Pool A, while Kazakhstan, Thailand, mainland China, Mongolia, and Hong Kong will compete in Pool B.

As the host, Việt Nam has chosen the Iranian team to kick off the tournament, followed by club teams from Mongolia and mainland China. The day concludes with the Kazakhstan team, the previous edition's winner, taking on Thailand.

The following day features matches of Pool B, with teams from Chinese Taipei playing Japan, Thailand playing Hong Kong and mainland China, and teams from Mongolia challenging Kazakhstan.

The tournament will apply the Video Eyes Challenge, and all participants will play their pool round-robin preliminaries between April 25 and 29.

The two best teams in each pool will advance to the semi-finals on May 1, with the final taking place on May 2.

In the last edition held in Kazakhstan, Kuanysh edged past Altay VC 3-2 in the all-Kazakh final, with Thailand's Diamond Food-Fine Chef Sports Club taking the bronze medal and Iran's Barij Essence in fourth place.

The tournament winner will qualify for the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship.

Since its inception in 1999 in Thailand, the Asian Women's Club Championship has seen Chinese teams dominate, winning eight gold medals, followed by Thailand with six, Kazakhstan with four, and Japan with three.

The organisers will also present awards to the best individuals, such as the most valuable player, best setter, best spiker, best blocker, and best libero.

Việt Nam will then head to Cambodia for the SEA Games, where volleyball is scheduled from May 5. The team's best result at the SEA Games is a silver medal, losing to Thailand in the final match last May.

In other news, Việt Nam is in a challenging group at the Asian Women's Volleyball Championship 2023 in Thailand from September 3-10.

The team is drawn in Group C with powerhouses South Korea and Chinese Taipei, and Uzbekistan.

Despite their poor results in recent years, South Korea remains one of the strongest teams in Asia, ranking No 23 in the world and No 4 in the continent.

Chinese Taipei has also proved to be a formidable opponent for Việt Nam in the past, placing sixth in the last championship in 2019. Việt Nam and Uzbekistan are considered evenly matched.

Before the Asian championship, Vietnamese women will also participate in the AVC Challenge Cup from June 18-25 in Indonesia, where they are in Group D with Uzbekistan and Mongolia. VNS