Kickboxing

Hà Nội athletes, coaches and staff celebrate their first place at the National Kickboxing Championships in Gia Lai Province. Photo of VKF

GIA LAI — Hà Nội took the top position at the National Kickboxing Championships which saw fighter Huỳnh Văn Tuấn set a record, winning his eighth title.

As the national strong hub of kickboxing, the capital team met no challenge to dominate in both men's and women's categories.

They walked away with ten gold medals from the September 9 even in Gia Lai Province, leaving all other delegations far below in the medal tally.

However, it was Tuấn of HCM City who took the limelight with his brilliant title in the men's 51kg category. The two-time SEA Games champion has dominated this event since 2017.

According to the head of Muay - Kickboxing Section of the HCM City Culture and Sports Department, Giáp Trung Thang, Tuấn's high performance and spirit helped him win this title without difficulty.

Huỳnh Văn Tuấn of HCM City sets a record, winning his eighth national championship title in Gia Lai Province. Photo danviet.vn

In addition to the victories of the senior competitors, many young fighters also won gold medals such as Nguyễn Đình Minh Khuê of HCM City, Phan Vũ Bảo of Bình Dương, Hoàng Đình Mạnh and Hoàng Gia Đại of Hà Nội.

Along with the championships, the organising committee also held a 15th anniversary celebration of kickboxing introduction and development in Việt Nam.

The martial art arrived in Việt Nam in 2009 and became quickly strong in many cities and provinces, especially Hà Nội, HCM City, Bình Định, Thái Nguyên and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu.

It is currently an official elite sport with a competition system managed by the Sports Authority of Việt Nam.

Internationally, Vietnamese fighters have gained remarkable achievements. Most recently, they topped the 31st SEA Games' tally with five golds and secured four titles in the 32nd SEA Games 32 in 2023.

The Việt Nam Kickboxing Federation (VKF) was established in January and has organised many events to guide athletes and spread the popularity of the martial art more widely across the country.

During the anniversary, the federation officials signed a contract with AC Productions Limited (Vietnam Interior) on comprehensive cooperation in events and competitions, organisation and marketing, to develop kickboxing.

"As a sport that many people choose to practise to improve their health, physique and strong spirit, we believe that kickboxing will develop widely and Việt Nam will soon have world champions. And Vietnam Interior wishes to accompany this journey of Vietnamese kickboxing," said Trần Anh Cường, chairman of Vietnam Interior.

In response, Lê Thị Nga, VKF vice president, said that as many as 40 localities across the country are now developing kickboxing, but in order to lift the kickboxing movement to a new level, they really needed some helpful hands of sponsors like Vietnam Interior.

Hopefully in the near future, the VKF would attract more social resources for stronger kickboxing development, he added. VNS