Indonesia loses beach volleyball title defence chance at 2027 SEA Games
The sport was left out of the programme for Malaysia, which includes 473 events across 43 sports.
Indonesia will be unable to defend its men's beach volleyball gold at the 2027 SEA Games in Malaysia after the sport was omitted from the competition programme. The SEA Games Federation's executive committee approved 473 events across 43 sports on 30 October 2026.
Slamet Mulyanto, head of beach volleyball at the Indonesian Volleyball Association (PBVSI), expressed disappointment in a statement issued by the association on 3 November. He noted that beach volleyball is an Olympic sport and said Indonesia's achievements deserved an opportunity to be maintained and developed.
Indonesia won the men's gold at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand, beating the hosts in the final through a golden match. The Indonesian men have taken gold at every edition featuring beach volleyball since its introduction to the Games in 2003.
Despite the omission, PBVSI is continuing to prepare athletes for Asian and world championships, as well as Olympic qualification, in line with the competition calendar.
