Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Viet Nam preps for Indoor Games

Viet Nam is revving up for the third Asian Indoor Games to be held in provinces and cities nation wide next November.

Ha Noi will be the main venue for 11 sports, along with HCM City, Hai Phong, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong, Quang Ninh, Phu Tho and Dong Nai.


In a meeting with the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) in June, Viet Nam agreed to pay US$2.5 million for the right to host the biggest indoor sports event in Asia, which is expected to attract over 4,000 athletes, coaches and officials from 45 countries and territories.

Viet Nam is currently making preparations to construct an indoor sports centre to house the event.

The 24 official sporting events include athletics, short course swimming, finswimming, dance, archery, petanque, wushu, boxing, shuttlecock kicking, sepak takraw, aerobics, chess, Chinese chess (Xiangqi), futsal, Thai muay, traditional Vietnamese martial arts (Vovinam), billiards, kurash (central Asian wrestling), bowling, mountain climbing, kick boxing, hockey and a demonstration of the martial art jejitsu.

At the 2nd Indoor Games in Macau, China last October, which attracted 4,500 athletes from 45 countries and territories to participate in 135 events, Viet Nam ranked 13th in the medals tally - with two golds, five silvers and eleven bronzes.

At the 1st Asian Indoor Games in Thailand in 2005, Viet Nam, who sent a 15-member squad to compete in six of the 15 sports, finished in 21st place with one silver and one bronze medal.

The Asian Indoor Games is a biennial competition held by the Olympic Council of Asia for its 45 National Olympic Committee members and is designed to encourage young Asians to participate in a wider range of sports at top levels.

Source: VietNamNews

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