Vietnamese horse racing ready for international integration

With the desire to integrate equestrian and horse racing sports into the international arena, recently, at Thien Ma - Madagui racetrack (Madaguoi commune, Da Huoai district), the Steering Committee for the establishment of the Vietnam Equestrian Sports Federation met with representatives of many clubs across the country to urgently promote the establishment of the Vietnam Equestrian Sports Federation.

Pole vaulting

Equestrian sport has been an official Olympic sport since 1912. At the continental level, equestrian sport appeared at the Asian Games in 1982 and 1 year later, was included in the competition program at the 12th SEA Games - 1983, held in Singapore.

Up to now, the Asian Equestrian Sports Federation has 35 member countries, of which 8/11 countries in Southeast Asia have organizations that manage this sport, except for Vietnam, Laos and Timor Leste. Vietnam had planned to include the sport in the 31st SEA Games, but due to not meeting some basic conditions, the Equestrian sport was not proposed by the host Vietnam to be included in the competition program.

According to Mr. Nguyen Ngoc My - Head of the Mobilization Board of the Vietnam Equestrian Sports Federation, Chairman of the Ma Cau Club and Madagui Horse Show, the Mobilization Board of the Equestrian Sports Federation was established with the purpose of uniting, cooperating and mobilizing resources from organizations and individuals to invest in promoting the practice of horse racing and horse riding sports nationwide. Thereby, participating in horse racing, horse riding and horse show competitions in the country. From there, to select the best horses and jockeys (trainers) to participate in regional and international competitions. After 3 years of establishment, up to now, there have been 33 participating clubs, with a total of more than 450 racing and performance horses ready to join the federation. Of which, the Thien Ma Madagui Club in Madaguoi commune alone has 70 racing and performance horses.

At this meeting, the Steering Committee for the establishment of the Vietnam Equestrian Sports Federation proposed specific directions and plans for each stage. Therefore, the campaign for the establishment of the Vietnam Equestrian Sports Federation is of great significance in the development of this sport. Thereby, helping Vietnamese horse racing and equestrian sports to soon join international activities and participate in Southeast Asian and Asian federations.

The Vietnam Equestrian Sports Federation sets short-term goals of establishing a Training Center for racing and sport equestrian athletes; organizing professional training courses led by foreign coaches; opening training courses on shoeing skills for racing horses; supporting federation members in establishing and registering equestrian clubs in localities; organizing annual jumping and cross-country equestrian competitions; joining regional and continental Equestrian Sports Federations, and participating in the SEA Games and ASIAD.

In the next 3 to 5 years, continue to open training classes for racehorse jockeys, pole vaulters, and cross-country riders; open training classes for athletes in performance horse riding to music; open training courses for competition development in performance horse riding (Equestrian) and Horse Racing; develop more sport horse riding clubs nationwide with the goal of reaching at least 80 clubs; develop at least 5 Horse Racing clubs nationwide; join the International Equestrian Federation; add Dressage and Polo to the annual competition schedule of the Vietnam Sport Equestrian Federation; participate in Olympic sport horse riding at the 34th SEA Games in 2027 with the goal of winning medals in a number of competitions.

Meanwhile, the long-term plan of over 6 years includes: participating in the Olympic equestrian competition at the 35th SEA Games in 2029 with the goal of winning 1 to 2 gold medals; participating in the Equestrian competition at the 21st Asian Games held in 2030 in Qatar; continuing to develop equestrian clubs and horse racing clubs to at least 120 clubs.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc My said that the roadmap for Vietnamese horse racing and equestrian sports to participate in international competitions is as follows: Participate in competitions to gain experience and learn, strive to be in the top 3 at the 33rd SEA Games (2025) in Thailand, then aim to improve performance to be able to compete for gold medals after the next 2 games, specifically in 2029 and ASIAD in 2031.

From the perspective of a state management agency, Deputy Director General of the General Department of Sports and Physical Training of Vietnam Tran Duc Phan highly appreciated the efforts of the Steering Committee for the establishment of the Vietnam Sports Equestrian Federation, contributing to the development of a sport that is considered very suitable for human qualities and conditions in Vietnam. The congress to establish the Vietnam Sports Equestrian Federation is expected to be held in October 2023.

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