Defending Vietnam team excluded from 2011 SEA Games

Vietnamese women celebrate after winning the women's football event at the 2009 SEA Games in Laos

Indonesia, host of the 2011 Southeast Asian Games, just announced 48 sports and around 550 events to be organized at the biennial tournament, which may stir up comments from member nations as the host dropped some favorite sports.

Members of the ten-nation SEA Games Federation Council including Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam fear the drop of several regular sports like Billiards & Snooker and women's football could affect the future standard of the games.

Vietnam are now the champions in women’s football.

Other sports severely affected include cycling, rhythmic gymnastics, petanque, sailing, shooting and table tennis as Indonesia SEA Games Organizing Committee (Inasoc) proposed to shorten many events.

Traditionally, the standard program of cycling in the past SEA Games comprised around 12 to 15 events, but Indonesia wants to stage only seven, comprising three for men and four for women.

Shooting is cut down from 36 as in the last edition in 2009 in Laos to just nine, while rhythmic gymnastics has only one event compared with five to six previously.

Though the host has the privilege to choose sports, Indonesia must also consider the sentiments of other participating countries, Olympic Council of Malaysia honorary secretary Datuk Sieh Kok Chi was quoted as saying today.

We'll try to negotiate with the host during the coming SEA Games Federation Council meeting in Bali on Feb 23-24, he added.

Besides dropping some favorite sports, the host has added new sports namely bridge, paragliding, roller sports, shorinji kempo and wall climbing.

It is said that the cut of the sports is rooted from Inasoc wanting to become overall champions at the games. Traditionally, Indonesian athletes were not strong at them.

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Martial artist gets cash prize boost

Karate star Le Bich Phuong has received a cash prize of VND100 million (US$5,000) from Viet Nam Football Media JSC for her gold medal at the Asian Games last month.

She won Viet Nam's only gold medal at Asia's biggest sporting event, at which the 260-member squad bagged a modest haul of one gold, 17 silver and 15 bronze medals.

The 19-year-old athlete was also awarded VND100 million ($5,000) by cable TV provider Audio Vision Global (AVG), and VND30 million ($1,500) by the National Sports Administration for her performance at the Guangzhou Asian Games last December.

She is expected to receive a further VND45 million ($2,200) from the National Sports Administration at a ceremony this week.

The National Sports Administration also awarded prizes to the other 32 athletes who won medals at the Games, before Tet (Lunar New Year) begins next Wednesday.

Viet Nam seeks top-three ranking at regional games

The Viet Nam sports delegation aims to finish in the top three at the 26th Southeast Asia Games in Indonesia this year.

According to reports at the Viet Nam National Administration of Exercises and Sports' end-year meeting, Viet Nam plans to compete in 28 of 41 sports in the Games at Palembang and the capital of Jakarta in November.

The events include track and field, swimming, diving, archery, shooting, badminton, billiards, canoeing/kayak, cycling, boxing, pentaque, fencing, football, volleyball, table tennis, chess, rowing, Vovinam, sepak takraw, pencak silat, taekwondo, judo, karatedo, tennis, weightlifting, wrestling, wushu and gymnastics.

Besides the SEA Games, the administration is also focusing on the Olympic qualifications in some major sports such as track and field.

HCM City sports facility employs new boss

The privately owned Thanh Long Sports Centre, HCM City's best known sporting facility, has a new boss.

Le Trong Tri, who takes over as chairman from Quach Thanh Lai, said he sees huge potential in the centre which has been become a regular training and stopover place for football teams from all over the country.

The Binh Chanh District-based centre will remain focused on sports and its facilities will be expanded so that it can hold international events in future, he said.

Lai will, however, remain involved with running the place, which has two football pitches, tennis and badminton courts, and a pool.

Built in 2001, it is 60 per cent owned by young seafood entrepreneur Tri. — VNS

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HCMC sports official spells out tasks

HCM CITY — Mai Ba Hung, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, told Viet Nam News about his agency's main tasks this year.

What are your main tasks in 2011?

The city will continue to strengthen major sports and support elite athletes.

The city will speed up the process of setting up a management unit to manage the Rach Chiec Sports Complex.

The city is also seeking permission from the Government to host a continental- or regional-level sports event like the 2018 Southeast Asian Games and Asian Youth Olympics.

Another main task this year is to develop a multi-sport complex at Phu Tho and continue to mobilise resources to develop sports.

How is decentralisation helping develop city sports?

It has allowed the Department to better manage affiliated units and take advantage of their ability to contribute to the development of sports in the city.

This way the Department only works with the units that are assigned to oversee the sports.

For example, the department assigned the Phu Nhuan Sports Centre to manage men's volleyball. The Centre will manage the funds allocated by the city and work with the team sponsor.

What about policies to help elite athletes?

The city will help elite athletes like Nguyen Hoang Thien, Le Quang Liem, Nguyen Thi Kim Tuyen, and others take part in international competitions.

Thien will get VND500 million ($25,000) to cover the costs of foreign travel while Tuyen will begin training in China next month. The support for Liem will be decided this Saturday.

The city is planning to help Pham Hoang Nam play in international badminton tournaments. — VNS

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Ho Chi Minh City outlines sport strategy

Nine kinds of sports will be the focus of HCM City's main sports activities under a plan to 2020, according to officials.

Mai
Ba Hung, deputy director of the city's Department of Cultural, Sports
and Tourism, said the sports include taekwondo, judo, volleyball,
athletics, bicycle, table tennis, tennis, badminton and football.

Although these sports are popular, they have not been developed adequately, Hung said.

The
city will also focus on enhancing Olympic sports like weight-lifting
and gymnastics, as well as athletics, male volleyball, martial arts,
tennis and badminton.

In addition, the HCM City Football Club
said it will further invest in football, although the club is faced with
a shortage of finances.

The department has also asked Thong Nhat
Stadium to offer training programmes for young footballers to develop a
long-term pool of players for football.

Hung, who is upbeat about the sport, said: "I think city football will see further progress this year."

Other sports like table tennis, cycling and tennis will also receive more funds from various sources.

The city will also work with the sports federation to send athletes abroad for professional training, according to Hung.

Officials
said the city was considering plans to build the Rach Chiec Sport
Centre and the HCM City Sport Centre, the latter expected to be located
near the Phu Tho racetrack.

HCM City is also preparing necessary documents to ask for the right to host the SEA Games in 2015, 2017 or 2019.

For
long-term planning, the department will select athletes with the most
potential and train them into professional athletes. It is also working
with many sport centres to invest in other sports with potential,
especially beach volleyball.

The number of city residents who
play sports has been increasing, accounting for up to 25 percent of the
city's population until October last year, according to city
authorities.

In 2010, the city held a total of nearly 800 amateur sport competitions./.

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Ho Chi Minh City outlines sport strategy

HCM CITY — Nine kinds of sports will be the focus of HCM City's main sports activities under a plan to 2020, according to officials.

Mai Ba Hung, deputy director of the city's Department of Cultural, Sports and Tourism, said the sports include taekwondo, judo, volleyball, athletics, bicycle, table tennis, tennis, badminton and football.

Although these sports are popular, they have not been developed adequately, Hung said.

The city will also focus on enhancing Olympic sports like weight-lifting and gymnastics, as well as athletics, male volleyball, martial arts, tennis and badminton.

In addition, the HCM City Football Club said it would further invest in football, although the club is faced with a shortage of finances.

The department has also asked Thong Nhat Stadium to offer training programmes for young footballers to develop a long-term pool of players for football.

Hung, who is upbeat about the sport, said: "I think city football will see further progress this year."

Other sports like table tennis, cycling and tennis will also receive more funds from various sources.

The city will also work with the sports federation to send athletes abroad for professional training, according to Hung.

Officials said the city was considering plans to build the Rach Chiec Sport Centre and the HCM City Sport Centre, the latter expected to be located near the Phu Tho racetrack.

HCM City is also preparing necessary documents to ask for the right to host the SEA Games in 2015, 2017 or 2019.

For long-term planning, the department will select athletes with the most potential and train them into professional athletes.

The department is also working with many sport centres to invest in other sports with potential, especially beach volleyball.

Sport centres in the city have faced a lack of space for athletes to practice because the land for public activities has become limited, especially in the central districts.

The lack of co-operation among various organisations and agencies has also presented barriers to furthering sports, according to city officials.

The number of city residents who play sports has been increasing, accounting up to 25 per cent of the city's population until October last year, according to city authorities.

In 2010, the city held a total of nearly 800 amateur sport competitions. — VNS

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Sibling walkers set Sports Games records

Simply the best: The opening ceremony of the National Sports Games in Da Nang. — VNA/VNS Photos Ngoc Truong   Walk on by : Nguyen Thi Thanh Phuc finishes first in the 20km walk

HA NOI — Walker Nguyen Thi Thanh Phuc from Da Nang finished first in the women's 20km walk at the sixth National Sport Games, which kicked off in Da Nang city on Saturday.

She clocked a one hour 40 minute finish to win a gold medal and a new national record, beating Phan Thi Bich Ha from Vinh Phuc, who came in second, and Lai Thi Hoa of Thai Binh, who finished third.

Her younger brother Nguyen Thanh Ngung then added another gold and set up a new record of 1:31.32 in the men's division.

Marathoner Nguyen Dang Duc Bao of Khanh Hoa finished first in the men's marathon with time in 2:31.32, while Pham Thi Hien from Thai Binh came first in the women's event at 2:53.02.

With 29 sports already finished in 20 localities nationwide, Ha Noi continued to dominate the medal tally in the ongoing National Sports Games by claiming top position with 153 golds, 112 silvers and 113 bronzes.

HCM City trailed with 102 golds, 88 silvers and 114 bronzes, while the Military team ranked third with 56 gold, 71 silver and 64 bronze medals.

The Sports Games, which are organised every four years, will close on Friday. — VNS

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New season of the V-League to kick off in January

Defending champions Ha Noi T&T will meet Hoa Phat Ha Noi in the opening match of the V-League on January 22.

The new season will see 14 teams competing for a cash-prize of VND3 billion (US$150,000) in the national championship.

The most anticipated match of the first round will see 2008 champions Da Nang battling it out against two-time champions Hoang Anh Gia Lai at Chi Lang Stadium.

Yesterday, Eximbank officially signed a 3-year sponsorship deal with the national V-League worth a total of VND90 billion ($4.5million).

The Viet Nam Football Federation said it would officially announce that cable TV provider Audio Visual Global (AVG) won the exclusive television rights to the V-League in a ceremony on Saturday.

Disciplines named for 2014 SEA Games

Karate had been included on the schedule for the 17th Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea in 2014, announced Vu Son Ha, head of the national sports administration's karate department.

The martial art and cricket were the last two sports to be selected by the Olympic Council of Asia after a meeting in Oman on Tuesday.

The Incheon Asian Games Organising Committee plans to host 35 sports, including 28 Olympic sports as well as baseball, bowling, kabaddi, sepak takraw, soft ball and wushu.

The national sports administration also selected karate as one of 10 key sports that would receive special investment as part of a 2011-20 strategy.

Capital's fencers take golds at SEA Champs

Young Hanoian fencers have bagged six golds at the on-going Southeast Asian Youth Fencing Championships in Brunei.

Nguyen Thanh Van clinched a gold medal in the women's individual epee, while Nguyen Thi Thanh Loan added another in the sabre.

Le Thi Bich and Nguyen Tien Nhat also took golds in the women's foil and men's sabre late on Tuesday.

There was more success for Viet Nam in the team events, with the men's team winning the sabre and the women taking the epee gold. — VNS

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VN plan for extra height, fitness

HA NOI — The Viet Nam Sport Science Institute has submitted details of a proposed pilot project titled, Improving the Strength and Height of the Vietnamese People, to the Government for approval.

Former Viet Nam Sport Science Institute director Duong Nghiep Chi, who chaired the committee which designed the project, said the plan included ways to improve the fitness of Vietnamese sportsmen and women from next year until 2030.

"We sent the revised plan, which was started in 2000, to the Government early this week and I hope it will soon approve the project," he said.

The project was designed to benefit sports persons as well as help sports administrators scout for talent.

A survey the former director sponsored found that Vietnamese from six to 18 were weaker than Southeast Asians and Asians of the same age.

The proposed project includes a programme to enhance the strength and height of more than 33,000 students from 132 schools throughout Viet Nam.

It is intended to encourage them to take full advantage of nutrition regimes, exercise plans and selected sports.

It would also have sites reserved for the construction of sports complexes for after-school activities. — VNS

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Germany's '54 World Cup win could be drug-tainted - study

Hungary’s Galloping Major, the great Ferenc Puskas (left), lashes a shot at goal during the 1954 World Cup final. West Germany’s Werner Liebrich, who had injured Puskas with a fierce tackle when the two teams met in the group stage, attempts to block it. Puskas scored the game’s opening goal, in the sixth minute, but the unruffled and unfancied Germans came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 and take their first World Cup title. The game would later become known in Germany as ‘The Miracle of Bern’; the Mighty Magyars, epitomised by Puskas, were considered almost unbeatable

West Germany's 1954 World Cup-winning team, feted as the men who helped put a nation back on its feet after World War Two, may have been boosted by a secret doping program, according to a new university study.

Germany upstaged red-hot favorites Hungary 3-2 in the final in Switzerland in a victory that became known as the "Miracle of Berne", giving the war-weary nation cause at last for cheer.

"There are several strong indications that point to the injection of (methamphetamine) pervitin in some Germany players and not vitamin C as it was claimed," sports historian and author Erik Eggers, who conducted the study as part of a team at Humboldt University in Berlin, told Reuters on Wednesday.

Pervitin was a known stimulant at the time and had also been distributed to German soldiers in World War Two.

Team officials had said they had injected their players only with vitamin C during the tournament. No drugs tests were conducted at the time.

Eggers has been studying this case for some years and his report forms part of a wider project called 'Doping in Germany', launched by the country's sports authorities to investigate its doping past.

"Pervitin was at that time widely used in many sports and amphetamines were said to be also used by South America players," Eggers said.

"What is suspicious is that these injections to German players were distributed secretly and the only reason they became known was because those who got injected contracted jaundice."

Hungary had demolished the Germans 8-3 in the tournament's group stage, making West Germany's final win all the more surprising.

"The most important indication, though, is that vitamin C is not injected. This is very unusual. They could have just eaten an orange instead."

German football federation (DFB) officials could not be immediately reached for a comment.

German Olympic Sports Union (DOSB), the country's umbrella sports organization which launched the Doping in Germany project with other sports authorities, told Reuters they were aware of Eggers' study.

"Keep in mind these are indications and not proof," a DOSB official told Reuters.

Many Germans view the 1954 win as the springboard of the country's remarkable soccer success in the World Cups -- they have won three and been runners-up four times -- and a key moment of renewed optimism in post-War Germany.

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