Japan triumph as Asian champs and qualify for LA 2028!

Japan defended their AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship crown and reserved the first ticket to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games men’s volleyball event, besides that of hosts USA. In a second consecutive edition of the continental championship final, they coped with Iran in straight sets to top the podium and leave the opponents with silver. Korea edged Australia in a bronze medal five-setter to join Japan and Iran as qualifiers for the 2027 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Cup in Poland.

• Watch the AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship on VBTV

Japan celebrated their 11^th Asian title in history with the over six and a half thousand fans that packed the stands at the Kitakyushu City Gymnasium for Sunday’s gold medal showdown in Fukuoka. They delighted the home crowd not only with a 3-0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-23) shutout of their opponents from Iran, but also with qualifying to play at the Olympics for the third consecutive and 11^th overall time.

Opposite Yuji Nishida was the home team’s main driving force in Sunday’s final. He powered the victory with three kill blocks, two aces and a 65% success rate in attack, and shared the top scorer honors with Iranian counterpart Ali Hajipour (Haji), who put away four kill blocks and an ace towards a match-high 18 points. Outside hitter Ran Takahashi fired three aces and 14 spike kills at a 61% success rate to finish with a total of 17 points for the winners. His 22-year-old Iranian counterpart Poriya Khanzadeh also reached the double digits with 13 points to his name, including two aces and a block.

The bronze medal match earlier on Sunday offered a five-set battle, from which Korea emerged with a precious 3-2 (16-25, 25-18, 22-25, 25-18, 15-9) victory over Australia, equivalent not only to a spot on the continental podium, but also to a spot at next year’s World Cup in Poland. Outside hitter Subong Heo had a key role in his team’s success. He spiked at a 67% success rate in offense and put away an ace and a kill block towards a match-high 28 points. His cross-court teammate Sungjin Lim produced another 15 points, while opposite Donghyeok Im chipped in with 10. Outside Lorenzo Pope was Australia’s most prolific scorer. He raised three kill blocks towards a 23-point tally. Opposite William D'Arcy-Miles led the match servers with three aces for Australia and finished with a total of 14 points, while the team’s other outside Luke Smith put up three stuffs and signed off with a total of 13 points.

Japan’s 25-year-old outside hitter Ran Takahashi was honored as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the championship and on the tournament’s Dream Team along with setter Hideomi Fukatsu (Japan), opposite Ali Hajipour (Iran), outside hitter Poriya Khanzadeh (Iran), middle blockers Seyed Eisa (Iran) and Taishi Onodera (Japan), and libero Kyeongmin Park (Korea).

AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship: all results

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