Opening Ceremony of the 11th Hanoi Capital City Sports Festival

VHO - On December 15th, at the My Dinh Athletics Stadium (Hanoi), the opening ceremony of the 11th Hanoi Sports Festival officially took place with the theme "Hanoi Shines Brightly - Aspiration to Soar High," opening the biggest sports festival of the capital city and marking a new stage of development for the mass sports movement associated with high-performance sports.

Attending the opening ceremony were: Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Deputy Secretary of the Hanoi City Party Committee, and Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee, Vu Dai Thang; Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Dao Cuong.

Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Deputy Secretary of the Hanoi City Party Committee, and Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Vu Dai Thang, along with Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Dao Cuong and other delegates, presented flags and flowers to representatives of the marching contingents.

Hanoi's grand sporting event .

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee and Head of the Organizing Committee, Vu Thu Ha, said that in recent years, Hanoi has always paid attention to investing in the development of physical education and sports in a comprehensive, advanced, modern, and internationally integrated manner; maintaining a leading role nationwide in the movement of sports for all, high-performance sports, and improving the physical fitness and health care of the people.

This contributes to building a rich and healthy cultural and spiritual life, fostering a spirit of solidarity, self-reliance, and self-improvement, while maintaining the unit's position as a high-achieving sports unit.

Deputy Secretary of the Hanoi City Party Committee and Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee, Vu Dai Thang, passed the flame and, together with outstanding athletes, lit the Games' torch.

“The Hanoi Sports Festival is the city’s biggest sporting event, held every four years. Over 10 editions, the festival has continuously grown in scale, quality, number of sports, and number of participating athletes, setting many new records,” Ms. Vu Thu Ha emphasized.

Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee and Head of the Organizing Committee, Vu Thu Ha, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

According to Ms. Vu Thu Ha, the Congress is also an opportunity for units to showcase their strength, affirm the power of unity and the comprehensive development of the sports and physical education movement among the general public, officials, civil servants, armed forces, students, and pupils.

At the same time, the Congress will identify and select outstanding athletes, and train them to participate in the National Sports Congress and other high-performance sports competitions at the national and regional levels.

In preparation for the 11th Hanoi City Sports Festival in 2025, from July to November 2025, communes, wards, departments, armed forces units, agencies, and schools throughout the city simultaneously organized grassroots-level sports festivals.

Many exciting activities and competitions were organized, attracting nearly one million participants.

On behalf of the referees officiating the events at the Games, volleyball referee Tran Van Hau took the oath.

Athlete Le Anh Phuong (sports dance) took the oath on behalf of all participating athletes at the Games.

Ms. Vu Thu Ha affirmed: "The Sports Festival at all levels has truly become a festival for the masses, contributing to creating motivation for physical training, spreading the spirit of solidarity, and raising people's awareness of health care."

This year, the Games featured the highest number of events ever, with nearly 8,000 eligible athletes participating. The athletes competed wholeheartedly in the spirit of "unity, honesty, and sportsmanship," maximizing their talent and determination to achieve the highest possible results.

The Games featured 25 sports disciplines across 12 communes and wards, and 4 facilities managed by the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, with over 1,000 international and national referees, ensuring fairness, objectivity, and professional quality.

New spirit, new aspirations

The opening ceremony began with an artistic program themed "Thang Long Triumphal Song" and the song "Glory Awaits Us" .

A parade of participating units.

The event left a strong impression with its magnificent parade showcasing the strength of the participating units, demonstrating the spirit, scale, and vitality of the capital's sports and physical education movement. The parade consisted of 11 groups, divided into 22 blocks representing the wards and communes.

The highlight of the program was the procession and lighting of the Games' flame, with the participation of outstanding athletes, symbolizing the spirit, belief, and aspiration for excellence of Hanoi's sports.

The sacred flame further motivates the athletes to compete to the best of their abilities, conquering new achievements at the Hanoi Sports Festival, aiming towards the 10th National Sports Festival in 2026 and regional and international competitions.

Earlier, on the afternoon of November 13th, the Organizing Committee solemnly held a ceremony to request the flame to light the torch for the 11th Hanoi Sports Festival in 2025 at the Ho Chi Minh Museum – the source of sacred values ​​regarding national will and aspirations.

The congress contributes to the development of the sports movement for all.

Artistic program at the Opening Ceremony of the Congress

The 11th Hanoi Sports Festival in 2025 is a key event aimed at promoting the movement "All people practice physical training following the example of the great President Ho Chi Minh," developing the sports movement for all people in conjunction with the movement "All people unite to build a cultured life," contributing to building elegant, civilized, physically healthy, and intellectually strong Hanoi people.

This was also the first Congress held after the implementation of the two-tiered local government model in 126 communes and wards.

Through this, we will strengthen propaganda and raise awareness among all levels, sectors, and the people, affirming that the development of physical education and sports is the responsibility of the entire political system and society, and promote the movement's widespread and sustainable development.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/khai-mac-dai-hoi-the-duc-the-thao-thu-do-lan-thu-xi-188843.html