The Asian Championship has reached main round action. Eight remaining teams duel it out for the coveted title, there’s also a serious bonus in the ranking just for making it to the semifinals.
Reigning champion Qatar has won six titles in a row and is starting to approach the level of the earlier dominant, South Korea (nine gold medals).
The 2026 tournament draw set up an exciting matchup already in the group stage, where South Korea charged on by the wing player Dong-Hyun Jang fought off the opposition, winning a tight game 32–31.
With teams divided in four groups, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the host Kuwait joined South Korea with all wins in the first stage of the championship.
However, no earlier earned points are brought on to the main round and Japan stunned South Korea in a draw (23–23) in the early Thursday game. Iran and Kuwait play in the same group, while Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates join forces in the other.
The semifinal advancement equals securing a spot in the 2027 World Championship so tense matches should be ahead for the next few days.