HÀ NỘI — General Director of the National Sports Administration Vương Bích Thắng held a working session with a delegation from the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) led by David DS Moon.

At the meeting in Hà Nội on Tuesday, Moon said the OCA delegation’s visit aimed to promote the role of athletes through the establishment and development of athletes committees under national Olympic committees.

He said the OCA wants to discuss with the National Sports Administration a project on training athletes to prepare them for life after retiring from competition. The OCA official also mentioned granting scholarships for athletes with excellent performances and those in disadvantaged circumstances. He expressed his hope that after completing the national sport training centre in Cần Thơ, Việt Nam will invite foreign athletes to the centre for exchanges.

General Director Thắng said Việt Nam’s sport performance is still far below the Asian level, and the country hopes to receive support from the OCA to improve. The Vietnamese sport official hailed the athlete training project, which he said drew great interest from the Government of Việt Nam. He expressed his hope that the project will be launched soon.

Thắng also reported that the Việt Nam Olympic Committee’s athlete development board has begun operations but its work has not produced desired results. He said Việt Nam needs more assistance from the OCA.

Moon expressed his hope that Việt Nam will host the World Taekwondo Championship in 2019 with sponsorship of South Korean enterprises. — VNS