Why is football still on hold?

FOOTBALL ONLY HAS 2 REPRESENTATIVES

In its 8th edition, this year's Victory Cup retains 11 categories, including: Male Athlete of the Year; Female Athlete of the Year; Young Athlete of the Year; Coach of the Year; Team of the Year; Teamwork of the Year; Most Popular Athlete; Outstanding Disabled Athlete of the Year; Most Impressive Sports Image/Moment of the Year; Lifetime Achievement Award; and Outstanding Foreign Expert of the Year. However, most nominations lack entries from football. The sport only contributed two nominations, both in women's club football: Coach Doan Thi Kim Chi for Coach of the Year and the Ho Chi Minh City I women's football team for Team of the Year.

Coach Doan Thi Kim Chi is the only individual in the field of football to date to be nominated for the 2024 Victory Cup.

The absence of national teams, clubs, and football stars from the nomination lists for male athletes, female athletes, and experts is understandable. Vietnamese football is experiencing a lackluster 2024. At the national team level, the Vietnamese team was eliminated in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, winning only 1 out of their last 12 matches. Nam Dinh FC won the V-League championship thanks to the brilliance of their foreign players rather than relying on their core domestic players. The Vietnamese women's national team did not participate in any official tournaments this year.

Nevertheless, Vietnamese football still has a chance to "turn the tide." From December 9th, the Vietnamese national team will participate in the AFF Cup 2024. Former Deputy Director of the Department of Sports and Physical Education, Tran Duc Phan, Chairman of the Victory Cup Selection Council, affirmed: "The list of nominees for the best awards of the year may still change. If the Vietnamese national team performs well at the AFF Cup 2024, we will use this as a basis to add deserving teams and individuals to the nomination list to ensure fairness, so that the selection brings together the most deserving names in Vietnamese sports."

FIERCE COMPETITION

In the nominations for Female Athlete of the Year, Trinh Thu Vinh is a strong contender. The shooter, born in 2000, finished fourth at the 2024 Paris Olympics in the women's 10m air pistol event and also reached the final of the women's 25m air pistol event. Although she didn't win a medal, Thu Vinh's achievements are still noteworthy in her first Olympic appearance.

The title of Male Athlete of the Year is more difficult to predict, as candidates like Tran Quyet Chien (billiards), Nguyen Van Khanh Phong (gymnastics), Lai Gia Thanh (weightlifting), Le Tuan Minh (chess)... all have their own strengths. However, with two World Cup championships in Bogota and Veghel in 2024, along with the 2024 World Team Championship title, billiards player Tran Quyet Chien has a clear advantage.

Trinh Thu Vinh has become a strong contender for the Female Athlete of the Year award.

The title of Young Athlete of the Year is a competition between 8 athletes, including Nguyen Thi Huong (canoeing) with 1 Asian silver medal and 3 Asian U.23 gold medals, along with Vo Thi My Tien - the dominant swimmer in domestic swimming with 9 national championship gold medals, 7 national championship gold medals in the 25m pool, and 1 Asian age group championship gold medal, predicted to create an interesting "two-horse" race.

For the title of Best Disabled Athlete, weightlifter Le Van Cong has an advantage over the other four nominees thanks to his Paralympic bronze medal. For Coach of the Year, Coach Doan Thi Kim Chi of Ho Chi Minh City will compete against Nguyen Tuan Kiet (women's volleyball), Le Quang Thai (weightlifting for disabled athletes), Luu Van Hoan (canoeing), and Nguyen Thi Bac (athletics). As for the title of Best Foreign Expert, Park Chung-gun (shooting) will not easily defend his title as he competes with his compatriot Park Chae-soon (archery), Siyana Bozhilova (aerobic), and Daniela Samuilova Kerkelova (weightlifting).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/cup-chien-thang-vi-sao-bong-da-van-o-che-do-cho-185241111234355717.htm