Fierce race for Gold Medal of Vietnamese Athletics at SEA Games 33

(PLVN) - With the goal of winning at least 12 Gold Medals (HCV) at the 33rd SEA Games, Vietnamese athletics will face a big challenge at home against the Thai team, which has strength in athletics. At the 32nd SEA Games, Vietnamese athletics won 12 Gold Medals (4 less than Thailand) and at the upcoming Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, Vietnamese athletics only set the same goal as the 32nd SEA Games and are looking for new faces. That shows that our athletics development is still moderate despite active investment.

Host Thailand has invested heavily in athletics over the past two years, with athletes continuously training and competing internationally. The appearance of 18-year-old "prodigy" Puripol Boonson at the 31st SEA Games (2022), at only 16 years old, broke the Games record in the men's 200m event and won gold medals in both the 100m and 200m, even setting new national records in both distances, is clear evidence of the strong rise of this country.

Not to mention some countries that may use naturalized athletes, especially "hot spots" like the Philippines with Filipino-American Eric Cray (men's 400m hurdles) who has won many SEA Games gold medals and regularly competes in Asian arenas or Kristina Knott (women's 100m, 200m).

So what have we prepared for the biggest sports event in the region at the end of this year? Currently, there are 70 athletes gathered at 5 national sports training centers. Key events such as the 400m, 400m hurdles for women and 4x400m relay for women. These are athletes with long-term investment, not only for the SEA Games but also towards the 2026 ASIAD.

There have been about 10 international tours recently. There are many potential faces competing for official positions in the team such as: Tran Thi Nhi Yen (100m, 200m), Le Thi Tuyet Mai, Ta Ngoc Tuong (400m hurdles), Le Ngoc Phuc (400m), Bui Thi Kim Anh, Duong Thi Thao (high jump), Bui Thi Ngan (800m, 1,500m) who experts assess as having a high possibility of winning medals at the 33rd SEA Games.

The 100m hurdles event is witnessing a competition in terms of parameters between two hopes Huynh Thi My Tien and Bui Thi Nguyen. The return of Le Tien Long (31st SEA Games gold medalist) in the 5,000m and 3,000m hurdles also motivates his teammate Nguyen Trung Cuong. The number 1 hope is still the "track and field queen" Nguyen Thi Oanh - the girl expected to continue to shine in long distance running.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Nguyen - in charge of athletics, Vietnam Sports Department said that we are lacking good, professional international coaches to guide athletes: "Many young athletes have stagnated when joining the national team due to lack of specialized supervision. Besides, the current facilities cannot immediately meet the requirements of foreign experts", Mr. Nguyen expressed.

The Vietnam Athletics Federation is developing a separate project to invest in developing Vietnamese athletics towards 2035, with a vision to 2045, with the specific goal of maintaining second and first place at the SEA Games, striving for an ASIAD gold medal and Olympic-standard athletes. Finding funding to build a specialized training center for athletics is also one of the top priorities.

Tuan Ngoc

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/cuoc-dua-khoc-liet-gianh-huy-chuong-vang-cua-dien-kinh-viet-nam-tai-sea-games-33-post551069.html