September20September 20, 2026

NAGOYA, Japan – China and Thailand expectedly arranged a semis showdown by downing their respective rivals at the 20^th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 on Sunday, Sept. 20, at the Park Arena Komaki.

Showing why they are the defending champions, the Chinese outclassed Vietnam, 25-16, 25-16, 25-11, earning them a chance to get back at Thailand, which beat them in five thrilling sets at the Asian Volleyball Confederation Cup Continental Cup last month in Tianjin, China.

That victory secured Thailand a spot at 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

The Thais, on the other hand, rallied furiously in the second set to complete a 25-10, 29-27, 25-16 win over Southeast Asian rival Indonesia.

Their mouth-watering semis duel is set Monday also as the same venue.

In a tightly-contested match, South Korea dodged an upset bullet with a 26-24, 27-25, 25-21 win over Kazakhstan to arrange an exciting semis date with the host nation.

Cheered on by the home crowd, Japan romped to a 25-12, 25-16, 25-19 victory over Chinese-Taipei, with Yosnino Sato and Yukiko Wada leading the charge. Sato scattered 11 points while Wada contributed 10 points.

Pimpichaya Kokram led Thailand’s assault with 19 points on 14 attacks, 4 service winners, and 2 blocks. She was ably supported by Thatdao Nuekjang and Kaewkalaya Amulthala, who fired eight points each.

Power-hitting Azzahra Byaner paced Indonesia with 10 points – all on attacks.

Outside hitter Yushan Huang led China’s well-balanced attack highlighted by 14 attacks, 2 blocks and an ace as the Chinese dispatched the Vietnamese in a little over an hour.

Mengjie Wu, Aoqian Mengji, and Xin Tang provided the needed firepower by firing 15, 13 and 11, respectively.

Outside hitter Seoyoung Yuk was almost unstoppable, leading the Koreans with 20 points on17 attacks, 2 aces and a block. Hoyoung Jung also played a significant role by tallying 10 points, while Dahyeon Lee added 9 points.

All losers in the quarters were relegated to the battle for fifth to eighth places.

In the battle for 9^th for 14^th places, Nepal drew 13 points from Sumitra Regmi to beat Kyrgyzstan, 25-20, 25-16, 25-20, while the Philippines showed no mercy in drubbing Qatar, 25-8, 25-2, 25-9, at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park in Okazaki City.

The win, fashioned out before some wildly-cheering Filipino fans, would give the Alas Women a chance to finish as high as 9^th place. They finished No. 8 the last time they played in the quadrennial event during the 1988 Jakarta Games.