JAKARTA — The Philippines will take on powerhouse Thailand in the 18th Asian Games women's volleyball competition at the Bulungan Sports Hall inside Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex here on Sunday.
The match is set at 12:20 p.m. (1:30 p.m. Manila time).
It will be the first time for the Philippines to compete in the Asian Games since the 1992 edition in New Delhi.
“We’re very excited to play with them (Thais) because they are the gold standard in Asian volleyball,” national coach Shaq Delos Santos said on Saturday.
Thailand has won the Southeast Asian Games (SEA) Games 11 times, losing only to the Philippines in the 1993 Games held in Singapore.
The Philippines, on the other hand, pocketed the bronze medal -- its last medal in the SEA Games -- in Manila 13 years ago.
To prepare for the Asian Games, the Philippine team has trained for two weeks in Okayama and Osaka, Japan.
“We improved, yes. But of course, we’re still in the process of developing the chemistry and character of the team. We know it’s not an overnight process, but we need tough competitions like this to develop it,” Delos Santos said.
He hopes that the exposure in the Asian Games will help the team's goal of a podium finish next year in the Southeast Asian Games, which the Philippines will be hosting.
“We waited for a very long time to make it back to the Asian Games, so we might as well give everything we’ve got. We trained hard for this. We’re ready," said Delos Santos, whose team arrived here on Friday.
After Thailand, the Philippines will face Japan on Tuesday, Hongkong on Thursday, and Indonesia on Saturday.
The members of the team are Aby Marano, Jaja Santiago, Mika Reyes, Alyssa Valdez, Kim Fajardo, Dawn Macandili, Mylene Paat, Cha Cruz-Behag, Jia Morado, Dindin Manabat, Kianna Dy, Majoy Baron, Denden Lazaro and Maika Ortiz. (PNA)
