Vietnam's Women's Volleyball Team Dominates Group in Asian Women's Volleyball Challenge Cup, Italy's Azzurri Narrowly Miss Out on Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Abhay Singh and India Shine at Asian Doubles Squash Championships

The 2024 Asian Women's Volleyball Challenge Cup is well underway in the Philippines, with Vietnam's women's volleyball team making an impressive start to the tournament [ea194a07]. Vietnam has secured four straight wins in Group B, defeating Hong Kong (China), Singapore, Kazakhstan, and most recently, Indonesia [63c73b7b]. In their match against Indonesia, Vietnam displayed their dominance, securing a comfortable 3-1 victory [63c73b7b]. With these wins, Vietnam's women's volleyball team has claimed the top spot in Group B and advanced to the tournament's semi-finals [63c73b7b]. The coaching staff has set high goals for the team, emphasizing the importance of giving their utmost effort and maintaining caution against opponents [63c73b7b].

Italy's Azzurri volleyball team, led by coach Velasco, lost 3-0 to China, narrowly missing out on the Paris 2024 Olympic Games [ac07f147]. The team's performance was dominated by Lubian's strong attacking skills and the excellent distribution of setter Alessia Orro [ac07f147]. Despite the loss, the team showed improvement compared to their previous match against Brazil [ac07f147]. The Azzurri will now rest before preparing for the VNL tournament, where they will face Canada, South Korea, and Serbia [ac07f147]. The team has little time left to secure an Olympic spot.

The Women’s Volleyball Nations League 2024 Macao presented by Galaxy Entertainment Group has also concluded, with Italy defeating China in straight sets [0a89ce54]. China finished the week with two wins and two losses [0a89ce54]. The Netherlands finished on a high note with a straight-set victory over France, while Brazil remained undefeated with a straight-set win over Thailand [0a89ce54]. Volleyball World also donated professional volleyballs to communities in Macao [0a89ce54]. The next leg of the tournament will be held in Hong Kong, China [0a89ce54].

The Asian Women’s Volleyball Challenge Cup is a continental competition between senior national women’s teams from Asia and Oceania which are members of the Asian Volleyball Confederation. It has 14 member teams – Australia, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Philippines, Singapore, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam [09fde573]. Founded in 2018, it was supposed to be held every two years. The initial tournament did not push through, and the second edition two years later was canceled due to concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic. The format was changed to an annual tournament to serve as a qualifier for the FIVB Challenger Cup. The Philippines joined in 2023, placing 7th out of the 11 teams that participated. The recently concluded AVC Challenge Cup held in Manila had 10 participants with Vietnam retaining the title [09fde573]. The national women's volleyball team composition has faced criticism regarding the hasty formation, lack of preparation, and the selection of players. Despite winning a bronze medal at the Asian level, there are still unhappy individuals. The national federation decides on the team's composition, and the coach decides who plays and for how long. The team captain and tournament best setter Jia Morado de Guzman played a crucial role in the team's success. The team is expected to remain intact for future competitions. The team includes players such as Angel Canino, Dawn Macandili-Katindig, Jennifer Nierva, Eya Laure, Thea Gagate, Fifi Sharma, Vanie Gandler, Sisi Rondina, Faith Nisperos, Cherry Nunag, Dell Palomata, Julia Coronel, and Ara Panique. Coach Jorge de Brito has been praised for his calm on-court presence [09fde573].

Chinese volleyball fans are split over the prospects for their country’s women’s team after they were gifted a place at their 11th straight Olympics. Results elsewhere in the Volleyball Nations League meant China, who began the week under threat in the race for Paris, were France-bound even before their second match in the league’s Hong Kong leg on Friday. Some fans lamented the fact that under-fire coach Cai Bin and his team needed a boost from their regional adversaries. China have not missed the Olympics in volleyball since making their debut in 1984. They triumphed in Los Angeles, Athens and Rio, finished second in Atlanta, and took bronze in Seoul and Beijing. [4eeb3987].

The 22nd edition of the Asian Team Champs is taking place in Dalian, China, from 12th to 16th June [3d1831a3]. In the men's Pool stages, Singapore upset 7th seeds Sri Lanka to reach the playoffs, while Japan's win over 4th seeds India sees them top the Pool [3d1831a3]. The men's quarter-finals will feature matches between Malaysia and Singapore, Japan and Korea, Pakistan and India, and Hong Kong and Iran [3d1831a3]. In the women's event, the final round of Pool matches will determine the teams advancing to the semi-finals [3d1831a3]. The top seeds in the men's event, Malaysia and Hong Kong, recorded two 3-0 wins on the opening day [3d1831a3]. The top seeds in the women's event also secured two 3-0 wins, with India, Japan, Korea, and Sri Lanka also remaining unbeaten [3d1831a3].

Abhay Singh, along with Joshna Chinappa, won the mixed doubles title at the Asian Squash Doubles Championship 2024. They defeated Hong Kong China’s Tong Tsz Wing and Ming Hong Tang 2-1 (11-8, 10-11, 11-5) for the title. Abhay Singh also won the men’s doubles crown with Velavan Senthilkumar, defeating Malaysia’s Ong Sai Hung and Syafiq Kamal 2-0 (11-4, 11-5) in the final. Abhay Singh was part of the gold medal-winning team at the Asian Games last year. The women’s doubles event was not competed by India’s Rathika Suthanthira Seelan and Pooja Arthi Raghu, who were seeded fifth. [2cd49d15].