Choose wisely.

Not only the Vietnamese men's and women's football teams, but also a number of other sports in the Vietnamese Sports Delegation participating in the SEA Games 33 are conducting recruitment and identifying potential candidates. Through training camps, international competitions, and national tournaments, many athletes are being considered for the regional sports event to be held in Thailand later this year.

Competing in national tournaments

The Vietnamese sports delegation is expected to participate in the 33rd SEA Games with over 1,000 members, including athletes, coaches, experts, officials, and medical staff, competing in 45 out of the 66 sports and disciplines at the Games. Facing challenges from host country Thailand and other regional competitors, the Vietnamese delegation aims for a top 3 overall finish, rather than maintaining their number one position as in the previous two Games.

Although the recruitment targets have been lowered to a more manageable level, the sports disciplines competing at the SEA Games are not relaxing their efforts in selecting high-quality personnel. With only six months left until the Games, numerous disciplines are conducting recruitment, selection, or targeting of athletes during this period.

Taekwondo is determined to win many gold medals for Vietnam.

For kickboxing, the 2025 National Championship is an opportunity for coaches and experts to assess professional quality, review the team's strength, and prepare for the 33rd SEA Games. Mr. Dam Cong Dien - in charge of boxing and kickboxing (Vietnam Sports Department) emphasized that outstanding competitors at this tournament will be called up to the national team, starting training from July 1st to December 31st to prepare for the regional competition.

From the national championship, kickboxing has witnessed the rise of many athletes such as Huynh Van Tuan (Ho Chi Minh City), Nguyen Quang Huy, Trieu Thi Phuong Thuy (Hanoi) and Bui Thi Yen Nhi ( Hau Giang )... These are expected to be the faces that will participate in the national kickboxing team at the SEA Games 33.

In another discipline, triathlon, the 2025 National Club Championships also recently concluded in Ba Ria - Vung Tau . Vietnam's top athletes in modern triathlon (swimming – cycling – running), duathlon (cycling – running – cycling), and aquathlon (swimming – running) maintained their strong performance. Notable examples include Pham Tien San (duathlon), Vu Dinh Duan (triathlon, aquathlon), Nguyen Thi Kim Cuong (triathlon, aquathlon), Nguyen Thi Phuong Trinh (triathlon, duathlon), and Nguyen Thi Thuy Van (duathlon). They continued to secure leading positions in their respective events at this competition.

Two months ago, these athletes also participated in the 2025 National Triathlon Championship in Ha Nam. Through these competitions, the coaches gain a better understanding of the athletes' abilities and competitive opportunities. "All those who achieved success in the national championships have been selected for the national team to compete in Thailand later this year," said Ms. Nguyen Thu Phuong, head of the triathlon department (Vietnam Sports and Physical Education Department).

Taekwondo and athletics teams are calculating their chances of winning gold medals.

Similar to kickboxing or triathlon, taekwondo will hold two major tournaments in Ho Chi Minh City at the end of June. One is the national championship, taking place from June 21st to 25th. The other is an international competition, starting on June 27th and 28th. According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Huy, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Taekwondo Federation (VTF), through these two tournaments, a list of outstanding athletes will be selected to form the Vietnamese taekwondo team to participate in the 33rd SEA Games.

Currently, Vietnamese taekwondo still places its faith in several core athletes such as Bac Thi Khiem, Kim Tuyen, and Anh Tuyet. These athletes maintain their form and are confident in aiming for gold medals at the regional sports games. In addition, Vietnamese taekwondo also hopes to discover new talents through the two aforementioned national and international competitions. Previously, Vietnamese taekwondo achieved impressive results at the SEA Games, especially at the 31st and 32nd SEA Games. At the 31st SEA Games, the Vietnamese taekwondo team excellently won first place overall with 9 gold medals, surpassing Thailand (5 gold medals). At the 32nd SEA Games, despite only aiming for 4 gold medals, the Vietnamese taekwondo team still achieved impressive results with 4 gold medals, 5 silver medals, and 3 bronze medals.

Athletics is another sport that Vietnamese sports place high hopes on. Mr. Nguyen Duc Nguyen, head of the athletics department (Vietnam Department of Physical Education and Sports), said that on June 20th, 11 athletes from the Vietnamese athletics team departed for Thailand to compete. He stated: “The 2025 Thailand International Athletics Tournament will serve as a benchmark for the performance of several athletes. This participation is also the final international mission in the process of accumulating expertise in preparation for the 33rd SEA Games.”

In preparation for the 33rd SEA Games, the athletics department (under the Vietnam Department of Physical Education and Sports) and the Vietnam Athletics Federation focused on sending athletes from specialized teams to international competitions to gain experience. The management identified the first six months of the year as a period for testing and reviewing the training process.

Therefore, the Vietnamese athletics team has sent athletes from various specialized teams to participate in international competitions including the 2025 Asian Junior Athletics Championships (U18 age group), the 2025 Singapore Open Athletics Championships, the 2025 Hong Kong (China) Open Athletics Championships, the 2025 Taiwan (China) Open Athletics Championships, and the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships. Now, the 2025 Thailand International Athletics Championships is the remaining international task in the program to assess the athletes' performance.

Notably, in the women's 4x400m relay, athletes such as Quách Thị Lan, Nguyễn Thị Hằng, Hoàng Thị Minh Hạnh, and Nguyễn Thị Ngọc will have the opportunity for extended training abroad. This is also an event targeted for a SEA Games gold medal and a medal at the 2026 Asian Games.

Vietnam's strongest sports at the SEA Games

The Vietnamese sports sector has identified its strong sports disciplines with the task of competing for gold medals at the SEA Games. These include athletics, swimming, shooting, archery, taekwondo, karate, fencing, weightlifting, canoeing, gymnastics, boxing, judo, jujitsu, wushu, football, indoor volleyball, and table tennis.

Since the end of last year, these sports disciplines have been developing professional plans, training, and competing in many international (regional, continental) competitions to test their performance in preparation for the 33rd SEA Games.

In addition, Vietnamese sports also have a group of strong disciplines – which have already proven themselves in regional competitions – such as pencak silat, chess, 3x3 basketball, golf, billiards, esports, sepak takraw, etc., which also have the potential to compete for gold medals.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/the-thao/chon-mat-gui-vang-i772406/