"Art" brand through the SEA Games

(Baonghean) - Besides the sports that have made strong impressions and created miracles through the SEA Games, football is the sport that attracts the most followers. In each achievement of this king sport, there is always a strong mark of Nghe An players...

From miracles

Since its inception in 1959 (Vietnam is one of the six founding member countries), the SEA Games has been considered a means to strengthen relations between countries in the region and also a good opportunity to train and improve the sports competition level of athletes in the Southeast Asian region.

In the first SEA Games, Vietnam achieved a number of achievements, notably in the following sports: table tennis, shooting, tennis, swimming, cycling, football (champion in 1959), men's volleyball (champion in 1967). After a period of absence, it was not until 1989 that Vietnam returned to participate in this playground. The presence of the Vietnamese sports delegation at the 15th SEA Games, when the country was unified, the country was reunited, demonstrated the friendship, peace and stability of the Southeast Asian region. In this return, the Vietnamese sports delegation won 19 medals (3 gold, 11 silver, 5 bronze), ranking 7th out of 9 participating countries. Since then, Vietnamese sports have developed with remarkable progress through each SEA Games. In 2003, Vietnam was honored to host the 22nd SEA Games for the first time in the capital Hanoi. As a result, Vietnam took the lead with 340 medals (156 gold, 91 silver, 93 bronze). Since this SEA Games, Vietnamese sports have always maintained their position in the top 3 countries in the region.

Not only maintaining its top position, Vietnamese sports have also begun to "dominate" official Olympic sports such as athletics, swimming... sports that previously Vietnamese sports only participated in for the purpose of "learning". We can mention the excellent athletes participating in the 28th SEA Games this time such as: "swimmer" Nguyen Thi Anh Vien; "otter" Hoang Quy Phuoc; walker Nguyen Thi Thanh Phuc and certainly there will be many more gold medals, new records will be added to the collection of Vietnamese athletes at the 28th SEA Games taking place, but behind the smiles and glory brought back to the Fatherland, the medals won are all imprinted with the sweat, effort, will, aspiration, tears of happiness, and even the sadness of the athletes and coaches.

To Nghe An mark

At the SEA Games, besides the joy of the increasing number of medals on the overall ranking of the Vietnamese sports delegation, Nghe An fans also have another joy of following the steps of Nghe An players in the national team before, and later the U23 team. Nghe An football fans cannot forget the image of Van Sy Hung with his brilliant performance at the 1997 SEA Games when he scored 2 goals to help the Vietnamese team draw 2-2 with host Indonesia right at the "fire pan" Senayan. At that time, the "Little boy"'s skillful dribbling, as the regional press described it after the tournament, disrupted the defense line consisting of tall defenders of Indonesia. Or the brave tackles of steel center back Huu Thang, then the speed race along the sideline of midfielder Truong "buffalo"... contributed to helping the Vietnamese team win the bronze medal at the 1997 SEA Games, the silver medal at the 1999 SEA Games... At this 28th SEA Games, Nghe An fans were once again ecstatic with the performances of Cong Phuong, Phi Son, Manh Hung, Ngoc Hai... in the U23 Vietnam jersey.

The Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth Football Tournament is a launching pad for football talents. Photo: TH

To have players shine at the SEA Games and continental arenas, in addition to the participation of players from all over the country, it is impossible not to mention the Youth Football Tournament - Nghe An Newspaper Cup. Established 19 years ago, up to now, this tournament has become a truly useful playground for young players from all over Nghe An. From this tournament, many young football talents have been discovered, selected and trained by training centers across the country and become football "stars". Up to now, national player Le Cong Vinh still cannot forget the first time he came to Vinh City, went to eat ice cream and stayed at a hotel when Quynh Luu Youth Football Team entered the final round. Or striker Cong Phuong still clearly remembers the image of his first teacher, Truong Quang Vinh, who chose him to join the Do Luong Youth Football Team to participate in the Nghe An Newspaper Cup in 2005....

From the Nghe An Newspaper Youth Football Cup, many young football talents of the province have become national players. From playing football with bare feet on the Lam River alluvial plains or on the dry and cracked fields after harvests, up to now, they have left their footprints on the football fields of international arenas. That is also the motivation for the young players participating in the 19th Nghe An Newspaper Youth Football Cup to compete with all their might to shine and catch the "green eyes" of the coaches of the youth training centers, to nurture the dream of becoming football stars like the previous generations.

It is the grassroots, socialized tournaments such as the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth Football Tournament that are the basis and foundation for Vietnamese sports to continue to develop, further improve competition results, and become one of the countries with developed sports in the continent and the world.

Duc Dung