Lại Lý Huynh (right) competes in Chinese chess at the SEA Games 32 in Cambodia in May. He won gold medal in the men’s individual standard category and now he is expected to take gold medal for Việt Nam in the upcoming 19th Asian Games. — VNA/VNS Photo

Asian Games

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam's sports teams are gearing up for the 19th Asian Games (ASIAD) in China.

According to Đặng Hà Việt, director of the Sports Authority of Việt Nam (SAV), Việt Nam has registered to participate in 31 sports. The goal is to secure two to five gold medals, with high expectations placed on sports such as sepak takraw, Chinese chess, shooting, cycling, karate, weightlifting and archery.

Teams participating in swimming, athletics, rowing, canoeing, table tennis, tennis, gymnastics, roller skating, boxing, taekwondo, wrestling, wushu, judo, kurash, jujitsu, and fencing have fewer opportunities to compete for gold medals. However, they have set achievement goals to win bronze and silver medals.

The professional achievement targets have been established based on reports, analysis and forecasts made by the coaching staff of national sports teams, taking into account competition categories and athlete performances. Winning five gold medals poses a significant challenge, requiring the utmost effort from each athlete.

Based on professional practice and predictions, Vietnamese sports place the highest trust in sepak takraw and Chinese chess. In the case of sepak takraw, Việt Nam is focusing on the women's four-player competition as they have previously won the championship in this category at the 2022 and 2023 world sepak takraw championships. The women's sepak takraw team have undergone intensive training in Thailand to sharpen their skills in order to achieve the goal of earning gold.

Regarding Chinese chess, Việt Nam has officially registered the six best players to participate in ASIAD 19, including Lại Lý Huynh, Nguyễn Thành Bảo, Nguyễn Minh Nhật Quang, Nguyễn Hoàng Yến, Lê Thị Kim Loan, and Nguyễn Thị Phi Liêm.

These players have previously competed in the 2022 World Championship and 2023 Asian Championship, giving them some insight into the level of players from host China and other opponents. As a result, the Vietnamese team enter the event with the best mentality to compete and aim to secure gold in the men's and women's team events.

Additionally, there are several athletes in other sports who are also expected to shine, such as Nguyễn Huy Hoàng (swimming), Dương Thúy Vi (wushu), Trương Thị Kim Tuyền (taekwondo), Lý Hoàng Nam (tennis), Ðỗ Thị Ánh Nguyệt (archery), Nguyễn Thị Tâm, Hà Thị Linh (boxing), Nguyễn Thị Thật (cycling), Trịnh Thu Vinh (shooting), Nguyễn Thị Oanh, and Nguyễn Thị Huyền (athletics).

According to Việt, all national teams have undergone training both domestically and abroad, following the best training regimen to prepare for ASIAD.

In the previous ASIAD 18 held five years ago, Việt Nam achieved four gold medals in athletics, pencak silat, and rowing. — VNS