At the recent Vietnam Sports Economic Forum, Mr. Dang Ha Viet - Director of the Department of Physical Training and Sports received the question: "How do you evaluate the role of national sports federations and associations in attracting the attention and investment of society through high-performance sports activities, professional sports and grassroots sports?
To develop all three types of sports in a relatively balanced way, helping to attract social investment, how should the Department of Physical Training and Sports and national sports federations and associations orient, coordinate and implement?
The question is raised at the right time and in the general context of current Vietnamese sports.
Vietnamese sports are still "living" on the state budget, the level of socialization is not high. Calling for resources from businesses and sponsors faces many difficulties due to both objective and subjective factors.
One of the reasons comes from achievements and expertise. At this time, except for the SEA Games, Vietnamese sports have not had good results (on a regular basis) at the ASIAD and Olympic arenas.
In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to distinguishing and focusing investment on each type of sport.
Mr. Dang Ha Viet said: "The relationship between the sports industry and sponsors and businesses is an organic relationship. If any federation or association can develop on the basis of that relationship, it will be good for the development of Vietnamese sports.
Regarding professional sports, we have experience in organizing tournaments according to the international operating model, such as V.League (football), MMA or billiards... In addition to on-field competition, we need to focus more on business, image, fan interest and focus on which target group to develop (for example, young people who like a sport should play that sport, bring their family to watch together...).
Professional sports are likened to a locomotive that brings the sport closer to the people, leading to the development of the sports movement. When the movement develops, business and social conditions also develop. From there, the athletes' lives are guaranteed, and they have more jobs after retirement."
However, Mr. Viet also pointed out the shortcomings, when professional sports and high-performance sports need to be separated as well as coordinated smoothly.
Director of the Department of Physical Training and Sports emphasized: "Federations and associations are not the same. From the perspective of state management as well as implementation of legal documents, there needs to be coordination from leaders.
For example, the boxing federation, if professional sports are developed, will high-performance sports develop in parallel? Boxing rules in the SEA Games, Asian Championships (high performance) or professional tournaments are different.
If the Federation wants to generate revenue, it must organize professional activities and operate according to market mechanisms. Industry leaders will create conditions, but this affects certain aspects of high-performance sports. That is a problem."
Mr. Viet added: "The story from the athletics federation itself clearly shows this. Every year there are about 65 marathons, many middle-distance athletes ask the leaders to participate, both to train and to earn money.
But from a scientific perspective, a middle-distance athlete cannot run long distances, which greatly affects their performance when competing at high levels.
We must issue new regulations, high-achieving athletes need to be well-paid, otherwise they just want to compete professionally to earn money."
Each federation has its own characteristics in terms of types of mass, high-performance and professional sports. Therefore, the coordinating role of the federation must be adjusted and calculated to create harmony, create motivation and be the foundation for mutual development.
