Good news for the development of Nghe An table tennis

The ups and downs

Few people know that in addition to football, in the years 1982 - 2000, Nghe An sports had young table tennis players who left their mark nationwide such as Ho Khanh Lam, Ha Minh Tuan, Nguyen Thi Thu...

Among them, Ho Khanh Lam won the National Children's Table Tennis Championship in 1984 and was sent to attend an international children's summer camp in Hungary. Ha Minh Tuan and Nguyen Thi Thu also won many achievements in national tournaments and were members of the national team from 2000 to 2005, with the highlight being their participation in the 22nd SEA Games in 2003 in Vietnam.

However, since 1997, for various reasons, table tennis has been removed from the province’s high-performance training programs and from then on, Nghe An table tennis movement began to decline. The province’s investment in sports in general and table tennis in particular has not kept pace with development; the number of people practicing this sport has gradually decreased.

A women's doubles match at the 2022 Nghe An Province Student Table Tennis Tournament. Photo: Minh Quan

Although it is still on the list of sports competitions in localities, agencies, units and communes, wards and towns during the annual holidays and Tet, the number of athletes registering to participate in table tennis is much lower than other sports. Many young people or civil servants, public employees and businesses have turned to other sports that are considered more "trendy" such as mini football, tennis, badminton, etc.

Good news

Although the table tennis movement in Nghe An is declining, there are still many people who are passionate about this basic Olympic sport. Because playing table tennis is difficult but popular, low cost, moderate space, can be played in all weather conditions, does not require much strength and has a low risk of injury.

In the past 10 years, the number of Table Tennis Clubs in the province has gradually increased and created a quite vibrant movement to practice this sport. From only a few clubs in Vinh city, there are now more than 50 average clubs in the province, mainly concentrated in Vinh city and the districts of Quynh Luu, Dien Chau, Yen Thanh, Quy Hop, Nam Dan, and Thai Hoa town.

A friendly tournament organized by Thanh Vinh Anh Em Table Tennis Club. Photo: CSCC

Among these, the most prominent is Thanh Vinh Anh Em Club with over 40 members and 5 tables. The chairman is Mr. Ha Trung Tin - a member of the Vietnam Table Tennis Federation, father of former national player Ha Minh Tuan - who won the Gold Medal in the team event at the Southeast Asian Youth Table Tennis Championship in 2002.

“The good news is that in recent years, the number of people coming to interact or join the club has increased sharply, including many promising young players. This is a good sign for the development of Nghe An table tennis in the coming time,” Mr. Ha Trung Tin shared.

In addition to Thanh Vinh Brothers Club, a number of other clubs in the province are also very active, regularly organizing and participating in tournaments inside and outside the province to compete and improve their skills such as Hoa Chau Nghe An Club, San Nhi Club, Bach Tin Yen Thanh Club, Pho Nui Con Cuong Club, Bau Sen Thai Hoa Club, etc.

A meeting of Bau Sen Thai Hoa Table Tennis Club (Thai Hoa Town). Photo: CSCC

In addition, the Center for Culture - Sports and Communication, the Department of Education and Training of districts, cities and towns have maintained table tennis classes for students in recent years, contributing to the development of the table tennis movement in schools, selecting and training athletes to participate in table tennis competitions in the excellent student sports competitions, and Phu Dong Sports Festivals at all levels.

In particular, since mid-2015, table tennis has been included in high-performance training at the Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center by the sports industry. Young athletes of the sport have participated in many national tournaments and won initial achievements such as bronze medal in mixed doubles at the National Youth and Children's Championship, gold and silver medals at the 9th National Phu Dong Sports Festival in 2016...

Along with that, in the past 5 years, on average each year the sports industry has organized about 4-5 provincial tournaments such as Nghe An Open Table Tennis Tournament, Team Table Tennis Tournament, Youth Table Tennis Tournament, Student Table Tennis Tournament... In 2019, Nghe An successfully hosted the National Table Tennis Tournament for Excellent Young Players.

Last November, the 2022 Nghe An Province Student Table Tennis Tournament also took place very excitingly, with the participation of more than 200 athletes from 22 clubs in the province, competing in 11 events. In addition, some localities such as Vinh city, Quynh Luu and Yen Thanh districts... also regularly organize open table tennis tournaments, attracting the participation of many excellent players inside and outside the province.

In addition, Nghe An athletes also regularly participate and gain impressive achievements at the annual National Family Badminton and Table Tennis Tournament. For example, at the 2022 National Family Badminton and Table Tennis Tournament held in Thanh Hoa province, Nghe An table tennis athletes won 3 gold medals, 3 silver medals, and 8 bronze medals, contributing significantly to the Nghe An delegation ranking 4th out of 25 provinces and cities participating in the tournament.

There have been positive signs for the restoration and development of table tennis in the province. However, according to Mr. Bui Danh Minh - Deputy Head of the Department of Sports Management (Department of Culture and Sports), who is also a famous young tennis player of Nghe An in the 1990s, in order for table tennis to develop steadily, in the coming time, it is necessary to strengthen youth training combined with investment in facilities; organize regular tournaments suitable for all subjects and ages...".

The Department of Culture and Sports needs to coordinate with the Department of Education and Training to promote the development of table tennis in schools, thereby discovering many athletes with the ability to train in depth in the province's high-performance team. On the other hand, there needs to be a social policy mechanism to call for all resources for the development of clubs as well as organizing tournaments in this sport.

Mr. Bui Danh Minh - Deputy Head of Sports Management Department (Department of Culture and Sports)