Lessons from countries in the region

(Baonghean) - A huge surprise for Vietnamese people at the opening ceremony of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia was the participation of athletes from three Southeast Asian countries and several African nations. So, when will the red flag with a yellow star of Vietnam have the opportunity to fly over the Olympic Village at the Winter Olympics? That's a question that's not easy to answer...

The Winter Olympics, held every four years, is a multi-sport event dedicated to winter sports. Therefore, the Winter Olympics do not have as long a tradition as the Summer Olympics (the first Winter Olympics was held in 1924 in Chamonix, France), and also have a limited number of participating countries (mainly due to weather and climate conditions). Besides competing for gold, silver, and bronze medals, participating in the Olympic Games also serves to showcase a nation's image to the international community on the path of integration and development. Furthermore, it demonstrates the spirit of solidarity among nations worldwide, as embodied in the Olympic movement. This was clearly evident in the opening ceremony of the Sochi 2014 Olympics, which featured many leading figures from major powers such as President Vladimir Putin of the host country, President Barack Obama of the United States, and President Xi Jinping of China.

Opening Ceremony of the Sochi 2014 Olympics.

Following the recent Olympic opening ceremony, many sports enthusiasts in Vietnam were surprised to see that some countries, lacking favorable climates for winter sports, still had athletes participating. This included athletes from Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, the Philippines, and East Timor – a relatively young nation not known for its strong sporting traditions (even in the "local" Sea Games, they are not a match for us in most Olympic events). Could it be that these countries have better sports development strategies than we do? And how much attention does the Olympic Committee really pay when their official website yesterday (February 11th) only featured information from long ago, such as the closing ceremony of the 27th SEA Games: Myanmar's farewell, and if there was any news about the Olympics, it was only peripheral information about preparations... That's enough to show the level of their interest in the Winter Olympic movement. But ultimately, the sports at the Winter Olympics are still very unfamiliar to us. Investing in building ice rinks that meet the standards for competition and training seems like a luxury. Sending talented ice skaters abroad for training is impossible because how can we select them when our country only has a few ice rinks mainly for recreation? The largest ice rink in Vietnam is reportedly located at FPT University (Hanoi), and it is also intended to serve the physical training needs of the university's lecturers and students...

But citing weather or economic conditions as reasons for not having athletes participate in the Winter Olympics isn't very convincing. Firstly, countries like Thailand, the Philippines, and East Timor are all located in Southeast Asia, where their climate is similar to ours, not to mention hotter. And what about African countries? The continent lies entirely within a tropical climate zone, with consistently high average temperatures, yet their flags still fly over the Olympic Village. Regarding the economic aspect, we invest a lot of money in sports each year, but primarily in the SEA Games with hundreds of athletes participating. However, the SEA Games remain a "local pond," considered by the world to be a low-level sport with countless shortcomings, from the organization of competitions and medal negotiations to refereeing... Of course, we still need to compete in the SEA Games because, just like the spirit of the Olympics, sports always serve as a bridge connecting cultures, solidarity, and friendship between nations and territories.

Many countries participating in the Sochi 2014 Olympics did not prioritize achievements but rather demonstrated a spirit of solidarity and integration. It is time for Vietnamese sports to also show this spirit. Hopefully, the participation of countries in the region will be a driving force to promote Vietnamese sports, and one day, our red flag with a yellow star will fly high over the Winter Olympic Village!

Canh Nam