Unfazed by wartime, Iranian volleyball girls move ahead with international meets
The wartime situation might have made a massive impact on Iranian sport over the past 10 weeks, but the circumstances have barely kept the women’s national volleyball team from pressing forward with an unprecedented preparatory program ahead of a congested international calendar in the coming months.
With a first participation at the Asian Games since 1974 on the horizon in September, the team embarked on a long journey on April 21 from Sari, traveling overland to Türkiye before flying to Bangkok to take part in the AVC Women’s Champions League under the name Mehregan Noor Club, joining up with South Korean head coach Lee Do-hee. Lee had left the country days after the United States and Israel launched a military campaign against Iran on February 28.
The team’s campaign in the Thai capital ended after only one game – a straight-set loss to the host’s Nakhon Ratchasima, which went on to finish runner-up in the tournament.
Iran has benefited from the FIVB’s development program over the past two years, hiring Lee as part of a generational overhaul in a bid to qualify for the 2028 Volleyball Nations League.
Following that tournament in Bangkok, Iranian federation president Milad Taghavi held talks with Ramon Suzara, president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation, and FIVB president Fabio Azevedo, securing FIVB’s financial support to use the international governing body’s training facilities in Thailand.
The national team, as a result, extended its stay in Bangkok for a 20-day training camp, as well as several friendly games, before leaving for Nepal for the CAVA Women’s Volleyball Championship, a tournament that carries significant importance for the country in terms of FIVB ranking points.
The Iranian girls have fond memories of the tournament, as they enjoyed a milestone campaign at the event last year in Tashkent, defeating Uzbekistan in straight sets in the final to capture a maiden international gold medal for Iranian women’s volleyball since the first national team was established in 1963.
International appearances will come thick and fast for Team Melli, which will follow the CAVA tournament with the AVC Women’s Nations Cup – starting June 6 in Candon, Philippines – where Iran has been drawn against defending champion Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and Lebanon in Pool B.
The event marks Iran’s third participation in the tournament, following last year’s sixth-place finish in Hanoi, Vietnam, and a fifth-place finish in the 2023 edition in Gresik, Indonesia.
The preliminary round will feature 30 matches across June 6-9 and June 11-12, with teams competing in a round-robin format within their respective pools. A rest day is scheduled for June 10.
The top teams from each pool will advance to the knockout stage, beginning June 13, which includes the semifinals and classification matches. The tournament will culminate on June 14 with finals for all ranking positions, including the gold medal match.
Looking to build on a decent run of results last year – which also included a bronze medal at the Islamic Solidarity Games in November – Iran will play in a couple of rematches from the 2025 edition. That campaign saw the team beat Indonesia in a five-set thriller in the pool phase before falling in four sets in the classification match. Lee’s side also faced Kazakhstan in Hanoi, suffering a 3-1 loss.
The national squad – featuring Shabnam Alikhani, Mahsa Kadkhoda, Sepinood Dastbarjan, Reyhaneh Karimi, Elaheh Poursaleh, Zahra Karimi, Fatemeh Khalili, Zahra Salehi, Masoumeh Qadami, Negar Hashemi, Hasti Vahedi, and Negar Abbasi – is expected to return home on June 14 after the conclusion of its campaign in the Philippines.