Sanya, China, April 22, 2026: Water polo got underway at the 6th Asian Beach Games on Wednesday with two games in the women’s round-robin competition at Sanya Bay Haiyue Square.
In the first game, powerhouse Kazakhstan defeated Thailand 3-2 in a shootout after the four sets were divided 2-2.
After Kazakhstan had romped away with the first set 6-3, the Thais fought back to win the next two sets 2-1. Kazakhstan came back to win the fourth set 2-1 and force the shootout.
Vassilissa Antropova and Yana Smolina were on target in the shootout, while both Thai attempts were saved.
Smolina and Antropova both netted a team-high three goals for Kazakhstan, while Kwantongtanaree Pittayaporn scored a game-high four goals from 12 shots for the Thais.
In the second game of the day, the People’s Republic of China defeated Hong Kong, China 3-1 thanks to seven goals from 10 shots by Xie Linshan. Yin Yiting and Yang Shengxuan added three goals apiece for China.
Hong Kong, China won the first set 2-1 before Asian Beach Games host nation China hit back to take the next three sets 4-0, 4-0, 7-1 to wrap up the match.
The women’s water polo medals will be decided on Friday, April 24 with the final round-robin matches, including China v Kazakhstan.