Ambitious objectives announced by our martial arts teams for the SEA Games 2023
Fighting for Gold
Vietnam's martial arts teams aren't messing around - they're aiming high for the SEA Games 33 in Thailand this December. With over 50 official sports on the line, the spotlight firmly falls on judo, taekwondo, wrestling, boxing, muay, pencak silat, karate, jujitsu, wushu, and kickboxing.
Vietnam's sports registry is set, confirming their participation in all martial arts events. Athletes have been hitting the mat since January, heeding Deputy Minister Hoàng Đạo Cương's call for professional training and dedicated preparation for this regional tournament. The nation's focus is on snagging multiple gold medals at the games.
Coach Phan Quọc Vinh of the wushu team emphasized the team's steady progress, despite expected challenges in Thailand this December. Meanwhile, Vũ Đức Thịnh, president of the Việt Nam Kickboxing Federation, expressed the team's dreams of putting on a strong performance at the SEA Games, with a strategic focus on core athletes and event specialization.
In the previous SEA Games in Cambodia, Vietnamese martial arts artists battled their way to numerous gold medals. The wrestling team shone brightest with 13 golds, followed by the judo team with eight and the karate and wushu teams with six each.
While specific gold medal targets have not been disclosed, the martial arts team is shooting for gold at SEA Games 33. One of their standout stars is boxer Hà Thị Linh, who grabbed a bronze medal at the 2025 World Women's Boxing Championship in March and is now intensively preparing for the 33rd SEA Games.
Another notable figure is Dương Thúy Vi, the top female athlete of the Việt Nam wushu team. With back-to-back gold medals at the 31st and 32nd SEA Games under her belt, Vi is expected to make a significant impact in Thailand later this year. At over 30 years old, Vi is determined to earn one final medal before moving on to coaching in the near future.
For the Vietnamese Muay Thai team, the world champion Huỳnh Hà Hụư Hiếu is currently gearing up for the 2025 Asian Muay Championship in June, which will take place in Vietnam. Afterward, she'll switch her sights to the SEA Games. At SEA Games 31, the Vietnamese martial arts teams clinched a staggering 85 gold medals, contributing to a total of 205 golds for the Vietnamese sports delegation. At SEA Games 32, martial arts brought home 68 of the 136 gold medals. With high hopes, their prospects for SEA Games 33 look bright. VNS
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southeast_Asian_Games#Disciplines [2] https://vietnamnet.vn/en/sports/25-sports-teams-to-compete-at-sea-games-33-607922.html [3] https://vietnamnet.vn/en/sports/three-wushu-athletes-tested-positive-for-drugs-in-binh-duong-province-616131.html [4] https://vietnamnet.vn/en/sports/vietnamese-karateka-cường-aims-to-represent-national-team-at-sea-games-33-628123.html
STRONG STANCE: The our websiteese karate team perform at the recent 'Glory of Việt Nam Sports' programme. - Photo cand.com.vn
The Vietnamese AI (artificial intelligence, assuming 'ai' is a typo) could potentially analyze the strategies of rivals in sports like muay thai, judo, and wushu to help the teams prepare for SEA Games 33. After the tournaments, Vietnamese AI could study the performances of core athletes in sports, cultural events, and war simulations to further improve Vietnam's sports culture.
