Defending champions Thailand start Asian title defense on the right foot

Reigning continental champions Thailand delivered a strong performance to start their title defense at the 2026 AVC Women's Volleyball Asian Championship on the right foot on Friday.

Besides the Thais, the national teams of Japan and Iran also earned victories in Tianjin, China, on the first day of the tournament, which will award one ticket to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games and another three to the 2027 FIVB Volleyball World Cup.

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

Thailand were dominant from the start in their debut and had no trouble sweeping Australia 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-18) to earn the first victory in Pool B.

Outside hitter Sasipapron Janthawisut led the Thai victory with a 19-point (17 kills, one block, one ace) performance, while star opposite Pimpichaya Kokram contributed another 12, with ten kills and two blocks. Outside hitter Caitlin O'Dea was the most productive player on the Australian side with 11 points (ten kills, one ace).

"It was great for us to get the first win in this tournament," setter and captain Pornpun Guedpard said. "We hadn't played Australia in many years, so we knew we'd have to be patient to understand their game. We lost our focus a little bit in the third set, but quickly managed to get back into the game."

Japan sweep Hong Kong

The highest-ranked Asian team in the FIVB World Ranking, Japan, who are currently sixth in the world, also started their campaign in Tianjin very well, overcoming Hong Kong 3-0 (25-9, 25-15, 25-12) in Pool C.

Star outside hitter Yoshino Sato was the catalyst of the Japanese victory, leaving the court with 17 points (14 kills, two blocks, one ace), three more than opposite Yukiko Wada. Outside hitter Sum Yuen Tang scored nine for Hong Kong, with five kills, three aces and one block.

The first match of the event was the only one to go beyond three sets on the opening day in Tianjin, and had Iran coming back to beat Chinese Taipei 3-1 (16-25, 27-25, 25-19, 25-14) in Pool A.

Opposite Elaheh Poor Saleh Shahdehsari was Iran's top scorer and the most productive player on the first day of the event as she delivered 25 points, with 21 kills, three blocks and one ace.

Outside hitters Fatemeh Khalili Chermahini and Ayda Valinezhad added 17 and 13 points, respectively, while outside hitter Tsai Yu-Chun registered 14 (12 kills, one block, one ace) for Chinese Taipei.

AVC Women's Volleyball Asian Championship: schedule and results

The six remaining participating teams will debut on Saturday. The day begins with Vietnam playing Korea in Pool C at 10:00 local time (2:00 UTC), continues with Kazakhstan and Indonesia clashing at 15:00 (8:00 UTC) in Pool B, and ends with hosts China facing Iraq at 19:30 (11:30 UTC) in Pool A.

The three pool winners, the three pool runners-up and the two best third-placed teams advance to the elimination rounds, which will feature the quarterfinals, semifinals and medal matches.

Quick links:
AVC Women's Volleyball Asian Championship
VBTV
Volleyball World Facebook
Volleyball World X
Volleyball World Instagram
Volleyball World YouTube
Subscribe to Volleyball World's Newsletter