Paralympic 2024: Vietnamese athletes are ready for their first competition.
VietnamPlus•30/08/2024
Currently, the Vietnamese athletes are in excellent spirits and physical condition, and they are actively training to prepare for the upcoming competitions at the 2024 Paralympic Games. The Vietnamese Paralympic team poses for a commemorative photo in the common room. (Photo: Ngoc Hiep/VNA)
The Vietnamese Paralympic team, comprising seven athletes, is undergoing intensive training before their first competition at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. On this occasion, a reporter from the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) in France visited the athletes at their accommodation and training facilities. The Athletes' Village in Saint-Denis, a suburb of Paris, in building D5, floors 9-10, is where the Vietnamese delegation has been allocated four apartments during the 2024 Paralympic Games. On the balcony, some male athletes are busy hanging red and yellow star flags to promote Vietnam's presence. In her bedroom, athlete Dang Thi Linh Phuong is rearranging her belongings. The room is simply furnished with minimal items such as a bed, wardrobe, blanket, and pillows. Athlete Dang Thi Linh Phuong is rearranging her belongings in her bedroom at the Olympic Village. (Photo: Ngoc Hiep/VNA) In the common room, other members of the delegation were sitting and chatting happily. Each person had their own task, but everyone seemed excited and nervous, eagerly anticipating the upcoming competitions. Speaking to a VNA reporter, athlete Nguyen Binh An said that before participating in the Games, he had received a lot of encouragement from his family, friends, and fans back home, so he always tried to maintain his health to achieve good results. He said that although he had prepared everything for the competition, upon arrival he found all the conditions very good, from accommodation to meals. However, to control his body weight, he only maintained his food intake at 60% of his usual level to stay in his weight category. A view of the Sports Village for athletes with disabilities in Saint-Denis, a suburb of Paris. (Photo: Thu Ha/VNA) Athlete Chau Hoang Tuyet Loan said that the food here is delicious and varied. Since she is still within the weight limit that allows her to eat a lot, she really likes eating rice because it's the fastest way to gain weight. She also often adds milk to her daily diet. Athlete Dang Thi Linh Phuong expressed her goal of participating in the Paralympic Games Paris 2024 is to "win a Bronze Medal, just like the achievement she made at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games." She also said that this is a good opportunity to improve her economic situation and to make sure others "can't look down on her." Sharing her story about how she came to weightlifting, she said that her family initially didn't want her to play the sport, and she herself sometimes wanted to give up because of the hardship, toil, and rigorous training. However, with the aspiration to change her life, the desire to go out into the world to observe, learn, and broaden her horizons, along with the encouragement and support from the Vietnam Paralympic Association and Committee, all of these things became the driving force that propelled her to achieve many good results not only in domestic competitions but also in the region and internationally. Mr. Nguyen Hong Minh - Deputy Director of the Department of Physical Education and Sports, Head of the Vietnamese Paralympic Team - said that the Organizing Committee had arranged excellent accommodation and training conditions for Vietnamese athletes, as well as for other delegations. The canteen is open 24/7, with a variety of dishes to suit the athletes' tastes. Currently, the Vietnamese athletes are in excellent spirits and physical condition, and they are actively training to prepare for the upcoming competitions. Mr. Nguyen Hong Minh expressed: "The delegation hopes that the athletes will win medals at this Paralympic Games. With their serious training attitude, we hope they will strive to achieve their goals." Weightlifters during a training session. (Photo: VNA) Meanwhile, Mr. Huynh Vinh Ai, Chairman of the Vietnam Paralympic Committee, highly praised the national spirit of the Vietnamese delegation, who always wore their uniforms and proudly displayed the Vietnamese flag everywhere and at all times. He shared: "The whole nation has entrusted the weight and responsibility to the athletes, and they all understand this. We also encouraged them to strive for achievements, and they have promised to do so out of national pride." According to the schedule, on September 1st, athletes Do Thanh Hai and Le Tien Dat will participate in the 100m breaststroke qualifying round. On September 5th, there will be the qualifying round for track and field athlete Pham Nguyen Khanh Minh (400m), and the medal matches for weightlifters Le Van Cong (49kg men), Nguyen Binh An (54kg men), Dang Thi Linh Phuong (50kg women), and Chau Hoang Tuyet Loan (55kg women). Athlete Nguyen Binh An expressed his hope to see the enthusiastic support of the Vietnamese community in France in the stands, as this would be a source of strength to help the athletes "explode and compete to the best of their abilities." With favorable living, accommodation, and training conditions, and with an optimistic spirit, it is hoped that Vietnamese disabled athletes will achieve the best results in the upcoming competitions.
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