Vietnamese sports media reported on Tuesday that Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen, the team’s top scorer and first outside hitter, has withdrawn from the 2025 Women’s Volleyball World Championship to be held in Phuket, Thailand, from August 22 to September 7.

The Volleyball Federation of Vietnam (VFV) issued a statement confirming that Tuyen will not participate in the World Championship due to family and personal reasons, with the player requesting to step down from the competition.

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However, the VFV also expressed that Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen will always be an important member of the team and that her return is welcomed when she is ready to contribute again in the future.

There had been previous news reports suggesting that Thailand might request an investigation from the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) into the gender of some Vietnamese players, including Tuyen, following a penalty imposed on one of Vietnam’s U21 team members by the FIVB in a previous world championship event.

For the 2025 World Championship, the Vietnam national team (ranked 21st globally) is in Group G, alongside Poland (3rd), Germany (11th), and Kenya (23rd). Vietnam will play their first match against Poland on August 23.