Professional tug of war has been developed for quite a long time in the southern provinces, since 2004 with experts coming to Ho Chi Minh City to organize training and disseminate the rules, and then in 2005 the first Ho Chi Minh City Open Tug of War tournament was held with 70 participating teams.
By 2007, Vietnam officially became the 17th member of the Asian Tug of War Federation and as national referee Nguyen Xuan Canh shared with Tien Phong newspaper reporter, the General Department of Sports and Physical Training began opening referee training classes in the North, preparing for the 1st National Tug of War Championship held in 2008.
In the world , tug of war was an official competition at the 1916-1917 Olympics, but was later removed from the competition program due to the requirement to reduce the number of athletes participating each time. Since 1975, the first World Tug of War Championship has been held in the Netherlands, every 2 years.
Because tug of war is one of the oldest sports in the world, and is also very popular in Vietnamese festivals since ancient times (recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2015), it causes some confusion, that folk tug of war is similar to professional tug of war. Actually, it is not.
According to referee Nguyen Xuan Canh, professional tug-of-war is very different, even completely different from folk tug-of-war. “For example, in folk tug-of-war, players can stand on either side of the rope, but professional tug-of-war requires players to stand on the right side. There are also other rules according to international tug-of-war rules, including pulling techniques or pulling positions,” he explained.
Referee Nguyen Xuan Canh also said that at first, due to a lack of understanding of technical aspects and awareness of the rules, disputes often arose in the matches. Over time, with many tournaments being held and attracting a large number of participants, the rules became more practical, people understood more clearly and professionalism increased, so disputes almost disappeared.
In 2022, tug of war was first included in the 9th National Sports Festival and will be included in the 10th National Sports Festival. Meanwhile, the 33rd SEA Games also marked a big step forward for this sport as one of the three demonstration sports, with the events of 8-men's team, 8-women's team, 4-men's team, 4-women's team and mixed 4-men-4-women.
The Vietnamese Tug of War team heading to the 33rd SEA Games consists of 26 athletes under the guidance of head coach Doan Cong Thuan, with confidence in impressive achievements such as second place in Southeast Asia (2009, 2017), third place in Asia (2008, 2017). Although tug of war is not counted in the overall medal tally, the athletes still practice diligently, with the determination to achieve the highest results, at the same time showing the strength and will of Vietnam and contributing to the development of this sport rich in identity.
"The inclusion of tug-of-war in major sporting events such as the National Sports Festival and the 33rd SEA Games is a very encouraging sign," said referee Nguyen Xuan Canh. "Tug-of-war is both a part of national identity and a modern and cohesive sport, promoting collective strength. I think this sport has a great future."
Source: https://tienphong.vn/mon-keo-co-sea-games-33-va-su-khac-biet-voi-keo-co-dan-gian-post1800188.tpo
Comment (0)