“I will aim for the podium even if my body is broken,” said Lee in a previous interview. Will it be realized in this tournament?메이저놀이터
On Aug. 17, the Korean women’s volleyball team held an open training session at the Jincheon Athletic Center ahead of the 2023 Asian Women’s Volleyball Championship (Aug. 30-Sept. 6, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand).
The tournament will be held four years after the 2019 edition in Seoul. There are 14 nations participating. Host Thailand is an automatic qualifier and will be joined by South Korea, Japan, China, Kazakhstan, Taiwan, Iran, Australia, and India, who finished in the top 10 of the previous edition, as well as regional wildcards Uzbekistan, Hong Kong, Mongolia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. In Group C, South Korea will play Taiwan, Vietnam, and Uzbekistan.
Lee Da-hyun, who has established herself as a regular middle blocker for the national team, is making her third consecutive international appearance, starting with the VNL in 2021. This time around in Asia, he will lead Korea’s midfield alongside Lee Ju-ah (Heungkuk Life), Jung Ho-young and Park Eun-jin (KGC Ginseng).
“We had three weeks to prepare after the cup tournament,” he said, “and we’ve been training by watching VNL game videos to improve our deficiencies and utilize our strengths.
When asked specifically about his weaknesses and strengths, he replied, “Blocking in counterattack situations and connecting to the offense after defense were not good, so I trained a lot on those areas.” As for his strengths, he added, “When the reception went well, I was able to utilize the middle blocker and connect the set to the attack, so I’m focusing on that part.”
This will be the first Asian stage for the senior players since they hung up their tricolors. “There are a lot of players who are inexperienced in big games, so I think there might be some pressure on that part, but I think it can be overcome if we have enough practice,” Lee emphasized.
“When we played against countries with big height or power, we had a lot of difficulties if we didn’t serve well, and it was the same when we had (Kim) Yeon-kyung, and since our serve is our strength, we will make good use of it and improve our efficiency in counterattack situations,” he said.
Kim is utilizing her international experience to play a vital role in the team. His confidence as the next big thing was also evident.
“VNL had a lot of losing games because there were a lot of world powerhouses, but I think the Asian Championship is a little more open than VNL, even though there is no guarantee of victory,” Lee said. “We have to play our own game to win. I think we are a little better than VNL in terms of breathing, so we will play with a certain amount of confidence.”
Meanwhile, the Korean women’s volleyball team will conclude the 2023 Asian Women’s Volleyball Championship before heading to the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou starting on September 23.
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