Roadmap to restore regional status for athletics

Accordingly, in addition to setting professional goals such as topping the SEA Games, winning at least 2 gold medals at each Asian Games from 2030 onwards, and securing a stable official Olympic qualification spot from 2028, the Plan also identifies athletics as a fundamental sport , playing a leading role in the national sports system.

Therefore, instead of focusing on short-term achievements, the Project aims for a comprehensive vision, closely linking improving community fitness with the goal of conquering international arenas. It is a harmonious combination of developing a widespread movement and investing heavily in high-performance achievements, creating a solid and long-lasting foundation.

The project has many new directions, especially emphasizing the role of the community, something that current marathon races are doing very well. This approach is considered a suitable shift in the context of Vietnamese athletics showing signs of decline, after having topped the SEA Games 29, 30 and 31 three times in a row.

At the 32nd SEA Games, we failed to achieve our goals, allowing the Thai athletics team to regain the top position. The athletics team also failed to win any medals at the 19th Asian Games and did not qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics. After the golden generation of Nguyen Thi Huyen, Nguyen Thi Oanh, etc., strong events (middle and long-distance running) have yet to produce a successor generation. Furthermore, dozens of other events lack talented athletes, despite having won Asian medals in high jump and long jump.

To date, we only organize no more than two national-level tournaments each year, while the local championship system has disappeared, seriously affecting the school sports movement, which once discovered talented athletes like Nguyen Duy Bang (high jump) or Pham Dinh Khanh Doan (middle-distance running). Therefore, despite being a popular, accessible, and easy-to-train sport, our elite athletics remains in a long-term, centralized system, funded by the state budget.

Currently, the training infrastructure for track and field is inadequate and outdated, while promotional and sponsorship activities are almost non-existent, making it very difficult to discover talent. Fortunately, the running movement and the recent proliferation of dozens of marathons across the country have proven that, with the right approach and professional management, track and field can still attract a large number of participants. By developing a widespread movement that engages the community, track and field can partially solve its financial challenges.

On another aspect, restoring athletics competitions in schools, with many events easily accessible to elementary school students and with a relatively modest investment budget, is the most suitable way to implement the Project. Furthermore, the feasibility of the Project also depends on the proactive approach and innovative capacity of the governing body.

Nevertheless, those involved in national sports still hope that, when the project is completed, athletics will take the lead in inspiring and providing valuable lessons to help other sports thrive.

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