Women's volleyball team still unable to change the color of their medal.

Vietnamese fans may feel disappointed that their team had four chances to win but failed to capitalize on them.

Having risen strongly as a new force in regional volleyball over the past two decades, the Vietnamese women's team has yet to surpass Thailand at the 33rd SEA Games.

Leaving behind a history of 11 consecutive defeats in the finals since 2001, the Vietnamese team made the Thais struggle to the very end in the battle for the championship in Bangkok on the afternoon of December 15th. For the first time, the Thai team lost the first set of a SEA Games final; for the first time, they were caught up by their opponents despite leading by two sets in a final; and for the first time, they had to play a five-set final and save four match points to turn the tide.

The Vietnamese women's volleyball team won the silver medal at the 33rd SEA Games (Photo: NGOC LINH)

Too many "firsts" threatened the Thai dominance in regional women's volleyball. Vietnamese fans may regret that their team had four opportunities to win but failed to capitalize on them. They regret even more that the Vietnamese team no longer had the right to watch the VC ( video challenge); otherwise, the Thai team's seemingly out-of-court shot could have led to an even greater final score, even if the home team had lost.

The outcome was decided; the Vietnamese team couldn't rewrite history and will have to wait for another tournament to make a difference.

The story of volleyball also reflects the overall situation of the sports delegations at this SEA Games: the Thais are making tremendous progress. They have left the rest of the SEA Games, including Vietnam, far behind with a superior number of gold medals and show no signs of slowing down after six days of competition.

With the number of gold medals decreasing rapidly over the past two days, the Vietnamese sports delegation will have to wait for more breakthroughs, even though there aren't many gold medals left in our strongest sports and key events. If Nguyen Thi Oanh can complete a "gold hat-trick," or if both the futsal and indoor football teams win gold medals, our current ranking in the top 3 is unlikely to change in the coming days.

The Vietnamese sports delegation still has the right to expect good performances from each team, both to fulfill the registered performance targets and to ensure continuity in the training and competition cycle in preparation for important competitions in the future, starting with the 2026 Asian Games and further ahead to the 2028 Olympics. Wushu female athlete Duong Thuy Vy revealed that she deliberately sacrificed her SEA Games achievements to increase the difficulty and hone her skills for the future, showing that the Vietnamese sports delegation has been and is preparing for a longer, higher, and stronger journey ahead.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/bong-chuyen-nu-chua-the-doi-mau-huy-chuong-196251215220054112.htm