Ok Om Bok Festival - Ngo boat race in Soc Trang

Ok Om Bok – the Ngo boat race in Soc Trang today has become a festival with profound humanistic significance in the spiritual life of the Khmer people of Southern Vietnam and has become a common cultural activity of the community in the region, contributing to the preservation and promotion of traditional cultural identity and strengthening national unity…

We invite you to learn about this festival of the Khmer people in Southern Vietnam through the photo series "Ngo Boat Racing Festival - Soc Trang" by author Duong Tran Hai. The Ngo boat racing festival during this time signifies bidding farewell to and giving thanks to the Water God after a year of abundant harvests. The Ngo boat race is highly popular and demonstrates community cohesion with the participation of many people. The author submitted this photo series to the Happy Vietnam Photo and Video Contest, organized by the Ministry of Information and Communications .

The Ok Om Bok Festival – the Khmer Ngo boat race – is also a source of pride for the community in the Southwest of Vietnam, having been recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2015. The Ok Om Bok Festival – Ngo boat race in Soc Trang province has held the Vietnamese record since 2005 for the largest number of boats and athletes participating. In even-numbered years, the Ok Om Bok Festival – Ngo boat race in Soc Trang province is organized at the regional level, or combined with the Southern Khmer Ethnic Group's Culture, Sports and Tourism Festival.

Following the referee's starting whistle, amidst the resounding cheers, the athletes exerted all their strength, swiftly paddling their Ngo boats in the water, propelling their teams' Ngo boats swiftly along the race course, making a spectacular breakthrough to the finish line.

From the very first qualifying rounds, the athletes of both the men's and women's rowing teams demonstrated a spirit of fierce competition, giving their all and providing the audience with thrilling and spectacular moments.

For the Khmer people of Southern Vietnam, the Ngo boat racing custom is not only a traditional sporting activity but also holds many sacred meanings.

It can be said that this is an opportunity for ethnic minorities in general, and the Khmer people in the Southwestern region in particular, to express their feelings and trust in the Party and the State, thereby raising their sense of responsibility to preserve, protect, and promote fine cultural traditions, improve the spiritual life of the people, and contribute to consolidating and strengthening the power of national unity, working together to build a more prosperous and happy homeland.

Vietnam.vn