Vanuatu volleyball

The 24 teams will compete in Tokyo later this year with Japan, Canada, Latvia and Spain already confirmed for the main draw.

A further 15 countries will qualify based on their provisional Olympic Ranking but Vanuatu's top pairing, Miller Pata and Sherysyn Toko, do not have enough time to climb high enough in the standings before the cutoff date on 15 June.

The team featured their debutant Majabelle Lawac in a solid win 0f 2-0 against Canada in their first game.

Lawac is only 17-years-old and she has been playing for the past 12 months.

The girls finished their pools with 2 wins and 1 loss under their name after losing to Australia and winning their game against Gambia.

The team will be playing against USA in the quarterfinals.

Titan FX is a technology-driven financial securities dealer, based in Port Vila, working in foreign exchange and commodities, which is keen to support the growth and development of Vanuatu’s leading sports team as it competes on the international stage.

Managing Director Audrius Bernotas believes this partnership is a reflection of the company’s vision as a part of the Vanuatu community.

 “Every employee of Titan FX, expat or local, loves Vanuatu and wants to promote it globally,” he said

The second set went all the way (26-24) but the veteran's held off the young ones.

The Men’s side made it to Round 16.

Meanwhile, Vanuatu took three teams to the tournament that was held in Australia.

The new-look Vanuatu team of Miller Pata and Sherysyn Toko were seeded 22nd in the women's draw in Thailand's Satun Province.

Vanuatu lost their first match on Tuesday, 21-17, 21-18, against the 11th seeds from Australia, Nicole Laird and Brittany Kendall.

On Wednesday Pata and Toko were outclassed 21-13 21-14 by the 5th seeds, Rumpaipruet Numwong and Tanarattha Udomchavee of Thailand.

The round of 16 was scheduled to begin today however the tournament has been postponed for one week because of heavy rain and thunderstorms.

The pair are ranked 19th in the world and need to get inside the top-16 by June to book their spot in Rio next August.

Pata and Matauata finished in a share of 17th place at the World Championships earlier this year and last weekend regained the Oceania women's title.

Pata, who was named MVP of that event, says they will resume their quest for rankings points in the new year.