SEA Games 32: A spirit of sportsmanship

Focus on the game, don't complain even when things are going badly.

When the schedule arranged for Vietnam's track and field queen Nguyen Thi Oanh to compete in the 1,500m and 3,000m steeplechase finals on the afternoon of May 9th with only 20 minutes between them, many spectators protested, claiming that the organizers were pressuring the Vietnamese athlete. They questioned how she could recover in time after finishing one event and then immediately competing in another, both with the goal of winning gold medals. However, the coaching staff of the Vietnamese track and field team, as well as Nguyen Thi Oanh herself, understood that this schedule was not arbitrarily set by the SEA Games host country but was changed by the competition scheduling department of the Asian Athletics Federation.

Female fighter Bui Yen Ly (left) in her victory against the home fighter from Cambodia.

Initially, these two events were scheduled on two different days, but they later adjusted the schedule based on the framework of other international competitions, deeming it appropriate. However, the organizers didn't realize that this shift inadvertently put Oanh at a disadvantage, forcing her to compete in two events too close together, instead of on two separate days.

Therefore, despite suggestions to react strongly or force the organizers to postpone the competition by half an hour to an hour, Coach Tran Van Sy and Nguyen Thi Oanh herself accepted the situation, knowing that even with demands, they couldn't change anything. They accepted it as a challenge they had to overcome. Coach Sy said: "Initially, we were very surprised because the organizers also had the list and knew Oanh was competing in these two events, which, in principle, shouldn't be too close together. But then we understood that we had to respect the competition, show sportsmanship, and focus on performing well in each event, because Oanh also competed in the 5,000m and 10,000m, so she had enough stamina to win both events." In reality, thanks to her high level of concentration during the competition, the golden girl of Vietnamese athletics eloquently demonstrated extraordinary willpower and determination to overcome the disadvantages.

Play fair to honor the image of Vietnam.

Also facing disadvantages, but mainly due to referee scoring, the Khmer kun (traditional Cambodian martial art) has seen many defeats turned into victories. In martial arts without automated scoring systems and relying instead on visual scoring by referees, subjective biases are unavoidable. Vietnamese fighter Le Cong Nghi in the men's 51 kg category was a victim of this; despite being the aggressor and aggressively attacking his opponent throughout all three rounds, he suffered a bitter defeat.

Understanding these difficulties, especially having to compete in the fervent atmosphere of thousands of spectators packed into a stadium, many coaches remind athletes to keep a cool head, overcome emotions, and suppress frustration. Athletes themselves also need to exercise restraint appropriately so that, whether winning or losing, they play with sportsmanship. The case of experienced female fighter Bui Yen Ly in the 57 kg women's category is an example; she could have easily knocked out the home fighter in the first round, clearly demonstrating her superior skill, launching a series of attacks that sent her opponent to the canvas twice. At that moment, Ly even jumped onto the ropes and raised her hands in celebration. That image wasn't wrong, but the Vietnamese fighter realized her mistake and managed to control her emotions.

When her opponent struggled to stand up, her legs unsteady, instead of attacking to finish her off, Yen Ly, after consulting with her coaching staff, decided to fight for points rather than aiming for a knockout. Partly, Ly wanted a beautiful ending to the match, and partly, as she later confided: "I knew I would win, so I wanted to play fair so the match would go through all three rounds, so the audience could see that I also wanted to create a more balanced fight for the development of this sport, rather than a quick victory that would disappoint the audience." Perhaps it was this attitude that led to Yen Ly receiving even more applause later on when she was declared the winner on points instead of by knockout. Vietnamese courage and intelligence demonstrated a noble and reasonable approach, contributing to the enhancement of the image of Vietnamese sports .

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