Marksmen compete in the recent National Top Shooters Tournament in Hà Nội. Việt Nam aim to bag six gold medals at the SEA Games 31 to be held in the country next year. Photo toquoc.vns

Shooting

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese shooters aim to bag six gold medals to lead the medal tally for shooting teams in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games 31 to be held in Việt Nam next year.

According to Nguyễn Thị Nhung, deputy chairwoman of the Việt Nam Shooting Federation (VSF), the shooters are confident of competing with the best in the region.

“For many years, Việt Nam and Thailand often gain half of the medals of the regional biggest sports event. This means that if the event has 22 disciplines for shooting and we strive to take six gold medals, we are very likely to surpass Thailand to the top teams,” said Nhung, who is also the head coach of the national shooting team.

Nhung said from the beginning of the year, the VSF planned to compete in international tournaments to prepare for the Games, but adjustments have been made due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Games 31 is one of the most important tournaments next year, so with the COVID-19 pandemic controlled in Việt Nam, the VSF has held many domestic tournaments to create opportunities for athletes to hone their skills and gain experience, as well as for experts to assess the quality of athletes.

At the National Outstanding Shooters Tournament which concluded in Hà Nội on October 18, the VSF also found many young talents.

“Via this tournament, we appreciated the progress of young athletes. Their achievements are quite good, along with that some of the key athletes of the national team still maintain their good and stable performance. This gives professionals confidence and security for the long-term plans of the national team towards two major goals including the Tokyo Olympics qualifiers and the 31st SEA Games,” coach Nhung said.

Vietnamese shooters will take part in all Olympic events of the SEA Games. In addition, the VSF also selected some events belonging to the competition system of the Asian Games to propose to the organisers to be included in the official competition system of the 31st Games, including those that are not strong points of Vietnamese shooting.

“We want to create a fair competition among shooters in Southeast Asia,” said Nhung.

The goal of Việt Nam shooting at the 31st Games is to bring young athletes to replace the veteran players of the national team, aiming towards future Olympics and Asian Games.  VNS