Iran's Sitting Volleyball Team crowned in 2023 Asian Zone Championships

The National Iranian Sitting Volleyball Team has trounced the host nation at the 2023 World ParaVolley Sitting Volleyball Asian Zone Championships in Kazakhstan, and captured the trophy.

According to Press TV, the Iranian men's team, which had earlier routed Iraq 3-0 (25-10, 25-7 and 25-15) on July 6 in a semifinal fixture of the prestigious tournament, swept past the hosts in straight sets (25-21, 25-14, 25-17) at the Jekpe -Jek Sports Centre in the Kazakh capital city of Astana (Nur-Sultan) on Saturday.

Iranian sitting volleyball players looked keen in their quest to retain the title, establishing their lead in the opening set. The hosts were equally keen on winning the Asian title and earning the crowd’s applause. Showing that they could play along their opponents’ tempo.

The Iranian athletes, however, charged into a strong 25-21 result, diffusing any attempt of a comeback from their Kazakh counterparts.

By the next set, the Iranian squad played with momentum in its favor. The team executed serve and attack with more precision and posted tougher defense.

The Iranians banked on a sizeable lead that shielded them from crucial points delivered by opponents, to take 25-14 in the second set.

Iran continued to surge forth in the third set. The Kazakh side, wanting to turn things around, inched its way to within two points at 16-18. Iran exerted all effort to capitalize on its confidence and sparked a scoring run to seal the match in straight sets.

As Iran had already qualified for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games after winning the World Championships last year in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, so the qualification place went to Kazakhstan.

“We have not even really started yet. Every game is just the start of our team for the next chapter. In this championship, we did not bring five of our most experienced athletes. In the Asian ParaGames in Hangzhou, we will have another combination of players,” Iran’s Coach Hadi Rezaei said after the final match.

“Our short-term goal is Hangzhou 2023, our mid-term is Paris 2024, and we hope to take our long-term goal all the way to Los Angeles 2028 Paralympics,” he added.

China also defeated Iraq 3-1 (16-25, 25-15, 25-22, 25-13) to win the bronze medal.

ME