Team Mongolia’s Khandsuren Gantogtokh played with KingWhale Taipei in the 2022 PVL Reinforced Conference where they reached the Finals against Creamline.
One of Team Mongolia’s athletes in Physical: Asia has a special connection with the Philippines.
Volleyball player Khandsuren Gantogtokh, also known as Handa, is one of six athletes representing Team Mongolia in the now-viral Netflix show.
But before that, she was playing with Taiwanese team KingWhale Taipei when they were among the guest teams for the 2022 PVL Invitational Conference.
There, Handa and KingWhale reached the Finals before ultimately bowing to the Creamline Cool Smashers in the one-game championship.
She scored six points in the title match against the Cool Smashers.
Handa is a middle blocker and is now playing with the Tokyo Sunbeams in the Japan V.League.
She started all five games for KingWhale that conference, seeing action in the semifinal and Finals. They only lost once -- unfortunately, in the championship game against Creamline.
Handa has been with the Mongolian national volleyball team since 2015 and is one of her claims to fame in Physical: Asia.
She is joined by Bokh wrestler Orkhonbayar Bayarsaikhan, judoka Adiyasuren Amarsaikhan, basketball player Dulguun Enkhbat, MMA fighter Enkh-Orgil "The Tormentor" Baatarkhuu, and circus artist Lkhagva-Ochir Erdene-Ochir.
Among the more memorable moments of Team Mongolia in Physical: Asia was their clash with Team Philippines in the Shipwreck challenge, which they won.
The latest batch of episodes dropped Tuesday afternoon with the series reaching its end.
Team Philippines was eliminated in Episode 7. The country was represented by team captain Manny Pacquiao, rugby player Justin Coveney, strongman Rey Querubin, crossfit athlete Lara Liwanag, former MMA fighter Mark “Mugen” Striegl, hurdler Robyn Brown, and alternate Justin Hernandez.
[RELATED: Laban Pilipinas: Moments that showed Filipino pride in ‘Physical: Asia’]
After Pacquiao exited the show early due to commitments, Hernandez was inserted into the lineup with Coveney taking over the role of team captain.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.