Iranian women drawn in Pool A of 2016 AVC Cup

Iranian women’s national volleyball team has been drawn in Pool A of the 2016 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Cup for Women, which is scheduled to be held in Vietnam in mid-September.

During the draw ceremony in Ninh Binh, Vietnam, earlier this week, the Islamic Republic of Iran landed in Pool A of the group stage of the forthcoming sports event, and was pitted against 2012 AVC Cup winners and hosts Vietnam, Thailand and Chinese Taipei.

Defending and three-time champion China was drawn in Pool B, and joined 2014 Asian Games gold medalist South Korea, 2012 London Olympic Games bronze medalist Japan and Kazakhstan.

The 2016 AVC Cup for Women will open in Vinh Phuc City on September 14 and will wrap up on September 20.

The pool round-robin preliminaries will be held over three days from September 14 to 16.

The Iranian sportswomen will face Vietnam in the curtain-raiser, which will be followed by matches between Thailand and Chinese Taipei, Kazakhstan and Japan in addition to China and South Korea.

The quarterfinals will begin on September 18 following a one-day rest.

While Pool A winner will play the fourth-placed team in Pool B, the runner-up in Pool B will take on the third-placed outfit in Pool A.

Asian powerhouse China has claimed the title in 2008, 2010 plus 2014, and is poised to capture the prestigious biennial tournament for the fourth time this year.

Iran women’s national volleyball team claimed the 8th spot twice in the 2010 and 2012 editions of the AVC Cup for Women, and improved one place in the 2014 games to claim the 7th slot.

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