10 outstanding Vietnamese sporting events of 2013

A busy year for Vietnamese sports concluded with the journey of our athletes at the 27th SEA Games. This is also the time for experts and fans in the country to look back at the most outstanding events of the year.

1. A disastrous year for football teams.

The Vietnam U23 team was eliminated after the group stage, and the women's team failed to defend their SEA Games title. Even before that, the national men's football team suffered a humiliating defeat in the 2015 Asian Cup qualifiers, setting an unwanted record: five consecutive losses.

All those failures, coupled with the domestic league chaos caused by XM Xuan Thanh Saigon's withdrawal from the V-League, painted a bleak picture for Vietnamese football this year. Ultimately, these consecutive failures were simply the consequence of lax youth training and poor direction from those currently running Vietnamese football.

The Vietnam U23 team ended a disappointing year for domestic football with a humiliating elimination from the 27th SEA Games.

In this context, the impressive performance of the Vietnam U19 team at the Southeast Asian Championship and the Asian qualifiers is like a breath of fresh air for the parched state of domestic football. The current U19 generation is also our greatest hope for the near future.

2. The Vietnamese sports delegation achieved its target at the 27th SEA Games.

With 73 gold medals, 86 silver medals, and 86 bronze medals, the Vietnamese sports delegation achieved both its gold medal target (70 or more) and its ranking target (being among the top 3 countries). Of the 73 gold medals, the success in two key sports – athletics and swimming – is particularly noteworthy. Athletics won 10 gold medals for the first time (the most ever), while swimming secured 5 gold medals, surpassing the previous record of no more than 2 gold medals per SEA Games.

Pham Thi Binh (women's marathon gold medalist) contributed to helping the Vietnamese sports delegation achieve its target at the SEA Games.

3. The rise of Ánh Viên and a host of other talents in swimming.

In a context where Hoang Quy Phuoc is not yet old, but is already considered outdated compared to the rapid rise of many new talents in swimming. There's Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, who astonishes her Southeast Asian rivals every time she dives into the water, and Lam Quang Nhat, who achieves success in the most unexpected event (1,500m).

This talented young force ensures that Vietnamese swimming will maintain its position for several more SEA Games, as well as opening up prospects for higher-level competitions such as the Asian Games and the Olympics, provided they receive the right investment. Particularly noteworthy is Anh Vien, the female swimmer who is currently the biggest challenge to competitors in Southeast Asia, and one of the best athletes at the 27th SEA Games.

Ánh Viên has become a new symbol of victory for Vietnamese sports.

4. Le Quang Liem wins the World Blitz Chess Championship.

June 10th can be considered a historic day for Vietnamese chess. For the first time, we had a player win the world championship in the blitz chess category. Although many strong players like Anand (India) and Nakamura (Japan) did not participate in this tournament, this does not diminish Le Quang Liem's ​​success.

Thanks to the help of his teammate Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (who defeated Quang Liem's ​​direct rival, Ruslan Ponomariov), Le Quang Liem became the first Vietnamese person to win this prestigious title.

5. Hoang Xuan Vinh wins the gold medal at the World Shooting Cup.

Constantly neck and neck with his biggest rival, Luong Tri Vi, from the qualifying rounds to the finals, Hoang Xuan Vinh finally pulled ahead with a total score of 200.8 points, 0.7 points more than Luong Tri Vi, winning the gold medal in the men's 10m air pistol event. This was the first gold medal for Vietnamese shooting at the world level.

6. Gymnastics team goes home empty-handed at the World Championships.

This was within the predictions of experts. Despite winning quite a few gold medals at international competitions, when entering the World Gymnastics Championships in Belgium, the Vietnamese gymnastics team, with names like Phan Thi Ha Thanh, Nguyen Ha Thanh… were unable to win any medals. Simply put, the opponents were too strong, and we need to make further progress if we want to reach world-class level.

7. Tennis player Ly Hoang Nam wins gold medal at Asian Youth Games.

Similar to Le Quang Liem's ​​world blitz chess championship, Ly Hoang Nam's victory in the men's singles tennis event at the Asian Youth Games was a first for Vietnamese sports. Hoang Nam won the tournament after defeating Mendoza Zosimo in the final.

In October, Hoang Nam won the ITF U18 tournament in Bangkok (Thailand), climbing to 95th in the ITF rankings and becoming the first Vietnamese junior tennis player to enter the top 100.

8. Arsenal (England) comes to Vietnam.

Although they weren't there to participate in an official tournament, the fact that a top European club like Arsenal (England) came to Vietnam can be considered a major event, because previously it was very difficult for us to invite big clubs to play friendly matches.

Podolski and "Running man" Vu Xuan Tien

For the first time, Arsenal, one of the four most famous and world-class football clubs in England, held an exhibition match at My Dinh Stadium. Arsenal's visit to Vietnam could create a positive effect, potentially encouraging us to invite other clubs to Vietnam.

Coinciding with Arsenal's visit to Vietnam, another unusual event occurred involving "Running Man" Vu Xuan Tien, who unexpectedly ran alongside the Arsenal team bus for several kilometers before heading straight to the Emirates Stadium following a special invitation from the club.

9. Nguyen Tien Minh's sad farewell in badminton.

Never before has Tien Minh had such a great opportunity to win the gold medal in the men's singles at the SEA Games, as all the strongest competitors in Southeast Asia had withdrawn from the tournament. However, the number one Vietnamese player once again disappointed, losing to an opponent ranked below him in the world rankings.

This defeat once again reflects the inconsistency of Tien Minh, a player currently ranked in the top 10 in the world. It's regrettable because by the time of the 27th SEA Games (most likely Minh's last), Vietnamese badminton will have a long way to go before finding a player capable of ranking in the top 100.

10. The Vietnamese team finished 3rd at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games.

Along with the 27th SEA Games, the 4th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG 4) was an event where the Vietnamese sports delegation sent a large number of athletes. We ranked 3rd out of 45 participating countries, behind only the two continental sporting superpowers, China and South Korea.

However, like many sports at the SEA Games, most of the sports at AIMAG are not of much interest to the rest of the world (Go, Kurash, Kababadi, Kick-Boxing, Bowling, Muay Thai, Dance Sport, etc.), so the event does not have a large impact.

According to Dan Tri