Qatar in Group 'G' for Asian Men's Volleyball Championship

Doha, May 30 (QNA) - Qatar are placed in Group 'G' along with India and Uzbekistan in the 17th Asian Senior Men's Volleyball Championship to be hosted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from September 28 to October 3 later this year. Dubai Sports Council (DSC) and a number of government bodies, and will be organised by the UAE Volleyball Association under the umbrella of the Asian Volleyball Confederation and the world body FIVB. The 78 matches of the Asian championship featuring 24 nations will be held at the Hamdan Bin Mohammad Sports Complex in Dubai. The top two nations from the three-team groups will advance to the quarter-finals phase followed by the penultimate rounds and the summit clash. The draw for the championship was held here late on Sunday. DSC General Secretary Dr. Ahmad Sa'ad Al Sharif; UAE National Olympic Committee General Secretary Mohammad Al Kamali; UAE Volleyball Association President Yousuf Al Mulla; General Authority of Youth and Sports Welfare General Secretary Ebrahim Abdul Malik; Asian Volleyball Confederation First Vice President Essa Hamza Ahmad attended the draw. The Asian Volleyball Championship is organised biannually by the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) and this is the first time-ever that this prestigious event is being held in the UAE. Bahrain hosted the second edition in 1979, Kuwait the fourth edition in 1987 and Qatar the ninth edition in 1997. The competition will feature the participation of all the major Asian teams, including current champion Iran, runner-up China, Australia, Japan and Korea. Hosts UAE will play alongside Jordan and Indonesia in Group 'A' while Australia - the team with the best world ranking in Asia at No. 11 - will head Group B along with Bahrain and Myanmar. Iran, who clinched theirfirst ever gold medal at the last edition held in Teheran, will commence the defence of their title in Group 'C' against Kuwait and Kazakhstan. China, who went to the top place for three times but lost to hosts Iran in Tehran in 2011, will be up against Saudi Arabia and Chinese Taipei in Group 'D'. Japan who hold the envious record of seven titles since the inception of this competition in 1975 have been put in Group 'E' along with Oman and Sri Lanka. Group 'F' consists of South Korea, bronze medal winner at 2011 edition, Iraq and Afghanistan. Representing President of AVC Saleh Bin Nasser, AVC Sport Events Council Chairman Shanrit Wongprasert said,"Teams now know who their opponents are going to be and they will have adequate time to get prepared for the biggest volleyball competition hosted in Asian volleyball." Commenting on the draw, the UAE Volleyball President Yousuf Al Mull said, "At first glance I think the draw in all groups is evenly balanced. As hosts it is our desire to do well in this competition and I think we stand a good chance of advancing to the knockout stages. After that it all depends who our opponents will be." Ranked 12th in Asia, the Qatar national team is also involved in the qualifying matches for the World Cup. The first phase is being held from June 4 to 8 and the second phase from June 25 to 30. GROUPS Group A: UAE, Jordan, Indonesia. Group B: Australia, Bahrain, Myanmar. Group C: Iran, Kuwait, Kazakhstan. Group D: China, Saudi Arabia, Chinese Taipei. Group E: Japan, Oman, Sri Lanka. Group F: South Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan. Group G: India, Qatar, Uzbekistan. Group H: Pakistan, Lebanon, Thailand. (END)