65 key athletes have been planned to receive a special nutritional regimen, aiming to help Vietnamese sports win 12 to 15 official spots at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
As of March 2024, Vietnam has only four official Olympic spots. They are Nguyen Huy Hoang in the men's 800m freestyle swimming event, Trinh Thu Vinh - women's 10m air pistol, Le Thi Mong Tuyen - women's 10m air rifle, and Nguyen Thi That - women's road cycling.
In addition, three other athletes are certain, or very close to, a ticket to the Olympics. Badminton player Nguyen Thuy Linh is considered certain to go to Paris if she does not get injured. She is currently ranked 22nd in the women's singles world and 16th in the 2024 Olympic qualifying rankings. In weightlifting, each weight class will take the top 10 athletes in the world rankings, and Trinh Van Vinh is currently ranked ninth in the men's 61kg category. Meanwhile, boxing is waiting for its first official ticket if Vo Thi Kim Anh defeats Islem Ferchichi in the women's 54kg category tonight, March 11, in the first Olympic qualifying round.
Nguyen Huy Hoang is the only Vietnamese male athlete with a ticket to the 2024 Olympics. Photo: Lam Thoa
The qualifying rounds will end no later than June 30, before the Olympics open on July 26. Over the next three months, Vietnamese athletes will have to compete in tournaments to accumulate points, or maintain their position in the group with tickets to Paris.
According to the Director of the Department of Physical Training and Sports Dang Ha Viet, the industry has carefully calculated when setting the target of 12 to 15 places to attend the Olympics, based on the reality of athletes with continental level or higher. This target is equivalent to 14 official places for Vietnam at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, combined with three special places in athletics (Quach Thi Lan), swimming (Nguyen Thi Anh Vien), shooting (Hoang Xuan Vinh) and one place in judo (Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy) due to the withdrawal of athletes from other countries.
From the reports of the departments, the Department of Sports and Physical Training selected 65 key athletes from 14 sports aiming for the Olympics, including swimming, cycling (1 athlete), badminton, judo (2), canoeing, taekwondo, gymnastics, table tennis (4), weightlifting (5), archery, rowing (6), athletics (7), boxing (8) and shooting (11). Except for cycling, canoeing and table tennis, the remaining 11 sports all have Vietnamese athletes competing at the Tokyo Olympics.
In addition to Trinh Van Vinh, weightlifting also has high hopes for Quang Thi Tam in the women's 59kg category, currently ranked 15th in the world, and Pham Thi Hong Thanh in the women's 71kg category, currently ranked 12th in the world. The opportunity for the two weightlifters to break through is determined by the Weightlifting World Cup, which is also the final Olympic qualifying round, taking place in Thailand from March 31 to April 11.
The Vietnamese shooting team, with the largest force, is expected to win one or two more spots. The number one hope is the 19th ASIAD champion Pham Quang Huy and his teammate Lai Cong Minh in the men's 10m air pistol event, Ha Minh Thanh - 25m rapid fire pistol and Phi Thanh Thao - 10m and 50m rifle. The last chance for the shooters is the Olympic qualifying round held in Brazil from April 11 to April 19.
Vietnam's number one female badminton player Nguyen Thuy Linh is almost certain to secure a ticket to the 2024 Olympics. Photo: badminton photo
In athletics, hope is placed on the women's 4x400m relay team with Nguyen Thi Hang, Nguyen Thi Ngoc, Hoang Thi Minh Hanh - the 2023 Asian champions, and Quach Thi Lan - the 18th ASIAD champion returning after serving a doping ban, replacing Nguyen Thi Huyen who retired. The coaching staff calculates the team's drop points at the Asian and world athletics tournaments in May and June 2024. Meanwhile, young talent Tran Thi Nhi Yen, with a personal record of 11.55 seconds for the 100m, is expected to make a breakthrough towards the A standard of 11.07 seconds.
Boxing has placed its full trust in the female boxers with eight names. Apart from Kim Anh, the remaining seven faces only have a chance in the second qualifying round held in Thailand from May 23 to June 3. World runner-up in the 50kg category Nguyen Thi Tam and bronze medalist of the 19th Asian Games in the 75kg category Luu Diem Quynh have the highest expectations.
In contrast to boxing, gymnastics relies entirely on the men's team with Trinh Hai Khang (freestyle, vault), Dang Ngoc Xuan Thien (horseback), 19th ASIAD runner-up Nguyen Van Khanh Phong and Van Vi Luong (parallel bars, all-around). These four athletes will also compete in the World Gymnastics Cup in Qatar in April to accumulate points, before participating in the Asian Championship in Uzbekistan in early May to consider direct Olympic tickets based on the results of each athlete.
Truong Thi Kim Tuyen (left) aims to attend the Olympics for the second consecutive time. Photo: Bui Luong
Some sports based on points such as taekwondo put their trust in Truong Thi Kim Tuyen and Bac Thi Khiem. Meanwhile, Do Thi Anh Nguyet is a key athlete in the women's single-string archery event. Rowing still focuses on the women's double sculls event. The sports predicted to be the most difficult in the race for a ticket to Paris 2024 are canoeing, judo and table tennis.
From February 1, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism approved a list of 65 key athletes, along with 24 coaches, who will receive a special nutritional regime of VND640,000/person/day, double the normal rate for a national team athlete. This regime includes VND95,000 for breakfast, VND240,000 for lunch, VND240,000 for dinner, VND45,000 for dinner, and VND20,000 for vitamin supplements.
However, the National Sports Training Centers in Hanoi, Can Tho, and Ho Chi Minh City still serve meals on trays. Some coaches and athletes appreciate the quality of the meals, but also propose that they soon be served in buffet form and have calorie counts.
The Department of Sports and Physical Training is also trying to resolve the shortage of sports doctors for the teams. The industry's current centralized training regulations do not have specific regulations on the number of doctors, nutritionists, and fitness experts, so there is no regime or funding. This is a great disadvantage for top athletes in the context of having to train, compete, and compete at the world level.
Hieu Luong
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