'Dominant victory over Korea,' Japan's volleyball team shuts out Iran 3-0 to claim 'Asian Championship title → direct qualification for LA Olympics'

*This content was translated by AI.

The Japanese Nam Ja-bae-gu (CEO) team has confirmed its qualification for the 2028 LA Olympics by topping the 2026 Asian Men's Volleyball Championship.

On the 13th, Japan defeated Iran 3-0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-23) in the final match of the tournament held at Kitakyushu Municipal Gymnasium in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, to claim the championship title.

Japan, which had previously delivered a dominant 3-0 (25-13, 25-11, 25-14) victory over Korea in just 59 minutes during the semifinals the day before, also secured a shutout win against Iran.

As a result, Japan earned the direct qualification spot for the LA Olympics reserved for the tournament champion. The team will also participate in the 2027 FIVB Men's Volleyball World Cup, which features the top three teams from this championship, alongside Iran (second place) and Korea (third place).

Meanwhile, South Korea, led by coach Isanaye Ramirez, came from behind to defeat Australia 3-2 (16-25, 25-18, 22-25, 25-18, 15-9) in the third-place match the previous day, securing a berth for the Men's World Cup.

Heo Su-bong (Hyundai Capital) led both teams with 28 points, while Lim Sung-jin (Korea Army) added 15 points and Im Dong-hyeok (Korean Air) contributed 10 points each.

At the awards ceremony following the tournament, Park Kyung-min (Hyundai Capital) was named Best Libero. Heo Su-bong finished as the tournament's top scorer with 113 points.

After returning home and taking a brief rest, the Nam Ja (CEO) team will head back to Japan on the 24th to enter Nagoya, where the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya (Japan) Asian Games will be held.

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*This content was translated by AI.