HANOI, May 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. and Thai teams are expected to make surprise at the international women's volleyball tournament which kicked off on Saturday in Vietnam's central Quang Nam province, according to the Vietnam Volleyball Federation.

The nine-day tournament, which will offer the champion a cash prize of 15,000 U.S. dollars, has attracted the participation of eight teams, including China's Jiangsu and Fujian, Thailand's Est Cola, Kazakhstan's Almaty, the United States' BIP, Vietnam's Thongtin Lienviet Post Bank, Vietinbank and VTV Binh Dien Long An.

There has been little information about the United States' BIP, while Est Cola is considered Thailand's selected young team.