Confidence in the Southeast Asian arena
With the Gold Medal won by athlete Tran Hung Nguyen on the evening of December 10 at the 33rd SEA Games, Vietnamese sports officially recognized the Vietnamese swimmer who has won the Gold Medal at the Southeast Asian Games for the past 20 consecutive years.
The first time we won the Gold Medal was the achievement of the late swimmer Nguyen Huu Viet at the 2005 SEA Games. This is the only Gold Medal in swimming of the Vietnam Sports Delegation. After 20 years, Vietnamese swimmers have maintained their form to continuously win Gold Medals at the SEA Games. Vietnamese swimming has had remarkable results through many SEA Games over the past 20 years.
The Vietnamese sports industry has invested in swimming, and at the same time, the expertise of Vietnamese players has increased according to training and preparation cycles - Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Water Sports - Mr. Dinh Viet Hung - once discussed.
In Southeast Asia, in the last 5 SEA Games before the 33rd SEA Games, the Vietnamese Swimming Team all held second place (after Singapore) in the total swimming table. Vietnamese athletes all exceeded the achievement target of over 5 Gold Medals in swimming events.
I rate Vietnamese swimming as having made the most significant progress in the past 20 years. That progress is not just a no-no but also a no-no from the numbers. That is, Vietnamese swimmers are confident in winning the Gold Medal at the SEA Games instead of just aiming to achieve this achievement. Professional preparation and always having a good team of athletes are the premises for Vietnamese swimming to affirm its position at the SEA Games for many years - sports expert Nguyen Hong Minh (former Director of the Department of High Performance Sports 1, General Department of Physical Education and Sports) analyzed.
Still waiting for the face of a veteran
The Vietnamese swimming team competing in the 33rd SEA Games consists of 16 swimmers. According to the actual professional forecast, the team's managers continue to wait for the medal results for the group of experienced players such as Tran Hung Nguyen, Nguyen Huy Hoang, Pham Thanh Bao. At the two most recent Southeast Asian Games, the 32nd and 33rd SEA Games, each of them won 2 individual Gold Medals to contribute to the overall achievements of the Vietnam Sports Delegation.
The swimming teams of Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia... are not lacking in qualified potential athletes. Therefore, we cannot say anything hastily at the 33rd SEA Games. In particular, the Singapore Swimming Team still has the strongest squad as well as set a target of winning more than 20 Gold Medals. For that reason, the competition is very fierce, said coach Nguyen Hoang Vu of the Vietnam Swimming Team.
In the Vietnamese swimming squad at the 33rd SEA Games, there are many young players with athletes such as: Nguyen Thuy Hien, Nguyen Quang Thuan, Nguyen Kha Nhi, Tran Van Nguyen Quoc, Duong Van Hoang Quy... However, they are still at a potential level. To make a breakthrough for young athletes at the SEA Games, the Vietnamese Swimming Team still has to do many things.
According to expert Nguyen Hong Minh, the top priority to help the Vietnam Swimming Team continue to have a breakthrough player is in key investment. Nguyen Thi Anh Vien was once discovered as a rough gem of swimming and then received a long-term investment in training in the US. In return, she made the Southeast Asian swimming community admire the results of the SEA Games Gold Medals.
In her career, Anh Vien has won 25 Gold Medals at the SEA Games. If calculated, the investment of Vietnamese sports to achieve the achievements that Anh Vien brought is still reasonable.
