Japan’s NEC Red Rockets and Vietnam’s LP Bank book spots at 2024 Club Worlds

Japan’s NEC Red Rockets Kawasaki and Vietnam’s LP Bank Ninh Binh earned the Asian tickets to the 2024 FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship. In Sunday’s final of the 2024 Asian Women’s Club Volleyball Championship in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, NEC Red Rockets beat LP Bank in straight sets to triumph as continental champions.

For the club from Kawasaki, it will be the second appearance at the Club World Championships, after their debut in the 2017 edition. LP Bank will participate in the global event for the first time. In fact, it will be only the second time a team from Vietnam competes in the Club World Championships, after last year’s appearance of Sport Center 1 Hanoi.

The 2024 Asian Women’s Club Volleyball Championship took place over the past eight days in the city of Nakhon Ratchasima with the participation of eight teams from seven different countries.

Interestingly, NEC Red Rockets and LP Bank met twice in the tournament, on the first and on the last competition days of the event in Thailand. On both occasions, the Japanese squad prevailed in straight sets. In fact, they lost only three sets throughout their campaign, which included a six-game winning run towards the continental title, their second in the history of the competition, after also celebrating in the 2016 edition. It was overall the fourth time a Japanese team wins the Asian Women’s Club Volleyball Championship.

Nakhon Ratchasima QminC were the toughest challenge on NEC Red Rockets’ journey to the Asian crown. In Friday’s semifinal, a crucial battle for one of the continental tickets to the Club World Championship, the home team took a two-set lead before their opponents from Kawasaki could build up an amazing 3-2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-17, 25-19, 15-10) comeback and disappoint the home crowd on the stands of the Chartchai Hall.

In the other decisive duel for a place in the continental final, LP Bank produced a 3-1 (25-23, 27-25, 18-25, 25-22) victory over Kazakhstan’s Kuanysh Petropavl.

In Sunday’s gold medal showdown in Nakhon Ratchasima, NEC Red Rockets mastered a 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-17) sweep to top the podium and leave LP Bank in second place with the silver medal, Vietnam’s second ever medal in the history of the continental competition, after last year’s triumph of Sport Center 1.

In the bronze medal match, Nakhon Ratchasima hammered out a 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-21) shutout of Kuanysh to complete the podium.

Outside hitter Yoshino Sato of NEC Red Rockets earned the Most Valuable Player award. Another seven players were named on the championship’s Dream Team:

Setter: Shiori Tsukada (NEC Red Rockets)
Opposite: Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen (LP Bank)
Outside hitters: Sittirak Onuma (Nakhon Ratchasima), Warisara Seetaloed (LP Bank)
Middle blockers: Haruyo Shimamura (NEC Red Rockets), Benoit Markenzie (Nakhon Ratchasima)
Libero: Sayaka Daikuzono (NEC Red Rockets)

• Watch the FIVB Volleyball Club World Championships on VBTV.

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