December 19, 2025, Chonburi, Thailand – Indonesia are now nine-time gold medallists in the Men’s Volleyball program of the Southeast Asian Games after defeating hosts Thailand via Golden Match in the 33rd edition of the biennial multi-sport event.
Indonesia 1 Akbar Bintang and Efendi Sofyan Rachman were nearly in tears after a tough Golden Match against Thailand 2 Muneekul Netitorn and Taovato Poravid on Friday morning at Chonburi’s Jomtien Beach.
Indonesia’s coach Slamet Mulyanto was very happy to see his players steady even under much pressure. “Thailand is a very good team, and it is always hard to battle against the home team. But today, the boys showed their quality and played well. We are happy to win the gold and get this distinction of keeping the gold all throughout the nine times in the SEA Games,” he said.
Bintang/Sofyan (INA1) established a good match, sweeping Kaewsai Dunwinit and Muadpha Wachirawit (THA1), 2-0 (21-10, 21-17).
The hosts bounced back with Thailand 2 Netitorn/T. Poravid winning 2-1 (21-14, 17-21, 15-10) over Indonesia 2 Pribadi Danangsyah and Firmanda Yosi.
Bintang/Sofyan (INA1) returned to Center Court, bringing their strongest blocks into play, but Netitorn/T. Poravid (THA2) learned to deal with their opponents’ hits. The Thais showed composure and a good grasp of their own court, picking up even the most powerful spikes to keep the ball in play.
The Indonesians needed to deal with some crucial miscues to build their momentum all the way to the gold medal point.
Earlier, Nguyen Anh Tuan, Le Hoang Y, Trang Van Viet and Nguyen Lam Toi of Vietnam bagged the bronze medal in the men’s podium as they defeated Malaysia in the Sport Arena’s Court 2.
N.A. Tuan/L.H. Y (VIE1) won 2-0 (21-10, 21-16) over Ho/Looi (MAS1), while T.V. Viet/Nguyen Lam Toi (VIE2) followed through with another straight-sets win, 2-0 (21-19, 21-15) against Bin Mazlan/Isma (MAS2).
The bronze in Chonburi represents the third medal for Vietnam in the men’s beach volleyball program of the SEA Games. They have reached the podium with silver at home in Nam Dinh in 2003. They took home the bronze medal in the 2009 edition in Vientiane, Laos.