Hue's young athletes can experience and enhance their skills |
Top 5 target
According to Coach Pham Ngoc Thanh, Head of the Provincial Taekwondo Division, this is one of the major tournaments, gathering about 1,000 athletes, and is also a valuable opportunity for young athletes to experience and enhance their skills.
In the years of competition in the Central Region Student Championship, Hue was always in the top group. “Home competition will offer a good opportunity for athletes who do not have much experience to study," coach Pham Ngoc Thanh affirmed.
Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo has been well prepared. Aside from the athletes of the provincial team joining in professional events (Nguyen Thi Huyen Suong, Tran Thi Ni, Le Thi Hong Phuong, Ho Van Nhan...), the division contacted the Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo Federation and the provincial clubs to build a team of high school students in preparation for the champion. Among more than 90 candidates, through the selection process, 60 excellent candidates were selected to enter this championship.
Despite participation mostly in the spirit of exchange and learning, coach Pham Ngoc Thanh hopes his students will play their best with the determination to reach a high ranking. Taekwondo Thua Thien Hue aims to be in the top 5 strong units, and the hope is pinned on athletes Nguyen Thi Huyen Suong, Le Thi Hong Phuong, Tran Nguyen Nhat Tan, Le Tran Tuan Kiet, and Nguyen Duc Huy...
At the Central Region student championships, Hue is always in the top group of units |
Young athlete Nguyen Duc Huy said, “Entering a big home tournament, there is a bit of pressure. However, I have been preparing from before Tet until now. Currently, I together with my teammates train in physical strength, speed, and technique. I desire to snatch a gold for the Hue Taekwondo team." Also very confident of a gold medal at this champion, young athlete Nguyen Thi Huyen Suong said, in addition to studying at school, she spends a lot of time training in preparation for the tournament.
Opportunity to seek talent
Besides the successes in the domestic arenas such as in the national championships, national Cups, or youth tournaments, Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo used to have a bright athlete. Typically, athlete Do Thi Thanh Ngan was once on the list of athletes participating in the World Young Taekwondo Championship. At the recent Southeast Asian Championship, Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo also scooped 2 golds (2017) and 1 gold (2018).
As a sport with strength, Taekwondo was chosen by Thua Thien Hue Province as a key sport of group 1 to focus on investment in 2021 - 2025. But recently, Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo achievements have had the stalling signs. In 2022, the division participated only in 3 tournaments. At the National Club Championship, Hue Taekwondo claimed only 1 gold. At the youth championship, coach Pham Ngoc Thanh's students won only 3 bronzes. Participated at the National Sports Games in “hope for gold", but unfortunately, Ancient Capital Taekwondo scooped only 1 individual bronze and 1 team bronze.
Like many other sports, Taekwondo is encountering difficulties with investment in infrastructure for training. It is the limited training conditions, especially the lack of facilities, modern means of competition such as electronic armor, and multi-faceted investment that partly affects the athletes’ performance and effectiveness of training and competition. The work of detecting and selecting young and potential athletes is also a matter of great concern.
Mr. Nguyen Van Phap, a member of the Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo team training board, voiced his hope: “The first national student champion held in Hue is a great opportunity to bring Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo movement step by step to school. This also opens up a good opportunity for the Thua Thien Hue Taekwondo movement to recover and develop strongly, thereby seeking the promising talent to supplement the Taekwondo team for competition at the larger national Taekwondo tournaments in the short and long run."