Controversy erupts at the closing ceremony of SEA Games 33: Thailand accused of ignoring Vietnam U22 team.
The closing ceremony of the 33rd SEA Games was marred by controversy when the host country Thailand's summary video omitted images of Vietnam's U22 team's victory but instead showed a controversial moment involving the Philippines women's team.
Vietnam U22's golden moment was "ignored".
At the closing ceremony of the 33rd SEA Games, held on the evening of December 20th at the Rajamangala Stadium, the host organizing committee of Thailand faced strong backlash from Vietnamese fans. The reason stemmed from a video summarizing the memorable moments of the Games, which completely lacked footage of the Vietnamese U22 team winning the championship.
It's worth noting that the victory of the Vietnam U22 team held great symbolic significance as they staged an emotional comeback to defeat the host nation, Thailand U22, in the final, despite being 2-0 down in the first half.
Ironically, while the moment of victory for the Vietnam U22 team was absent from the video, it instead showed images of the Philippines women's team celebrating their win. This was also a controversial situation that had previously occurred when the linesman disallowed a supposedly valid goal by the Vietnamese women's team, causing outrage among Southeast Asian fans.
The wave of outrage and previous controversies
The decision to disregard Vietnam U22's victory is seen as the culmination of a series of controversial decisions by the host country, leading many fans to question the fairness of the tournament.
Earlier, the Vietnamese sports delegation faced disadvantages in several other events. Boxer Pham Van Nam (56 kg category) broke down in tears after what he considered an unfair defeat against his Thai opponent. In Muay Thai, Hoang Khanh Mai only received a bronze medal after shocking rulings in the women's 45 kg semi-final. Pencak Silat also saw Vu Van Kien disqualified despite having a clear advantage.
This series of events has raised serious questions from Vietnamese fans about fairness and sportsmanship at the 33rd SEA Games, casting a shadow over the efforts of the athletes.
