Sophia Huỳnh Trần Ngọc Nhi of HCM City will compete at the first National Beach Tennis Championship later this week in Thanh Hóa Province. Photo of VTF

HÀ NỘI — The National Beach Tennis Championship 2022 will be held from September 19 to 24 at Thanh Hóa Province's Thiên Đường Xứ Thanh Resort in Hoằng Hóa District.

The first ever tournament will see the participation of 50 athletes, including national tennis team players, from five cities and provinces.

They will compete in five categories of men's and women's singles and doubles and mixed doubles.

Among the title candidates are Lã Xuân Hậu, Bùi Hoàng Anh, Nguyễn Thị Mai Linh and Nguyễn Thị Thanh Loan of Hà Nội, Sophia Huỳnh Trần Ngọc Nhi and Trương Vinh Hiển from HCM City and Nguyễn Việt Hoàng of the host city.

In addition to bonuses in cash for the top players, they will also receive points to improve their ranking by the Việt Nam Tennis Federation.

Beach tennis is a game combining elements of tennis and volleyball and played on a beach. 

The rapidly-growing sport is played in over 50 countries and by more than half a million people, with its greatest popularity occurring in Italy, Brazil and Spain. It offers a highly aerobic cardio workout with low impact on the knees and joints because it is played on sand.

The sport preserves most of the rules and scoring of traditional tennis, though modifications have been made to adapt to movement around the sand court and to the faster pace of the game. As the ball may not touch the ground, the game is played entirely with volleys, which makes for a quicker game than traditional tennis. VNS