President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on May 28 hosted a reception for head coaches of Vietnamese men’s and women’s football squads. (Photo: VNA The President congratulated coaches Park Hang-seo ofthe men’s football team, Mai Duc Chung of the women’s, and other coaches andathletes of Vietnam on their achievements at the biggest regional sports event,which took place in Hanoi and 11 nearby localities from May 12-23.
Vietnam ranked first in the medal standings with 205gold, 125 silver and 116 bronze medals. As many as 305 outstanding athleteshave been honoured with the Prime Minister's certificates of merit for theirexcellent performances at the event.
The President also commended the Ministry ofCulture, Sports and Tourism, the Vietnam Sports Administration, and localitiesfor their active role in the organisation of the Games.
Phuc expressed his admiration for the femalefootballers who have claimed the SEA Games championship title for seven times,and earned a berth at the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time.
Meanwhile, U23 Vietnam have brought home golds attwo consecutive editions of SEA Games, helping to affirm Vietnamese football’sposition in Southeast Asia, he said, stressing that the success by the twosquads marks a milestone of the domestic football and contributes to raisingVietnam’s image.
The President called on the coaches and athletes tomake greater efforts in the upcoming tournaments, helping Vietnam shine in theinternational arena.
For his part, Park suggested the Vietnamese Partyand State pay more attention to football, improving skills of players andgiving more encouragement to them.
Chung pledged to exert greater efforts in his work,and proposed the Party and the State pay more heed to job generation for femaleplayers after their retirement.
In this regard, Phuc noted that policies are neededto develop new, young athletes and coaches, and urged localities to furtherinvest in sport infrastructure and promote professional sporting.
He also asked agencies to provide timely rewards tooutstanding athletes and coaches at the Games./.
VNA
