Viet Nam wins gold at Asian Taekwondo Championship on home soil
VGP – Viet Nam won one gold, one silver and nine bronzes at the 2024 Asian Taekwondo Championship on May 15 in Da Nang City.
Vietnamese trio Chau Tuyet Van (left), Lien Thi Tuyet Mai (centre) and Nguyen Thi Le Kim win gold in the women’s over-30 recognised poomsae category.
All medals were in the poomsae (performance) disciplines which were organised on May 14-15 at the Tien Son Sports Complex.
The only title went to trio Chau Tuyet Van, Lien Thi Tuyet Mai and Nguyen Thi Le Kim in the women's over-30 recognised poomsae category.
The host martial artists successfully beat Indian team in the final match.
The silver of Viet Nam went to the men's over-30 recognised poomsae category by Nguyen Dinh Toan, Nguyen Van Truong and Vu Thanh Duong.
Nine bronzes of the team belonged to mixed pair over-17, U30 and over-30; men's over-17, U30 and U40 individual; women's U30 team; women's over-17 and U40 individual categories.
The kyorugi (combat) discipline will be held on May 16-18.
Vietnamese fighters will compete in 12 out of 15 weight categories. Hopes are one the national strongest ones such as former Asian champion Truong Thi Kim Tuyen (women's 49kg), Asian Games bronze medalist Bac Thi Khiem (women's 67kg) and SEA Games champion Ly Hong Phuc (men's 76kg).
"Almost of Asian Olympians will compete in this year championship with a view to improve their world ranking which would give them favorable place in the Olympic seeding list," said Nguyen Thu Trang, official of the Sports Authority of Viet Nam's Taekwondo Department.
"It leads to high competitiveness in all matches and categories. Our athletes will face big challenges to make their medal target come true.
"We fail to have an official Olympic spot due to unexpected results in qualifications. However, the Asian championship is a good chance for them to sharpen their skills in preparation for the Asian Indoor Games and Martial Arts and the world championship in the next few months," Trang said.
The tournament's opening ceremony was organised on May 15 evening.
More than 1,000 officials, athletes, coaches and staff from 45 countries and regions have taken part in the championship. According to the organisers it is the largest number of participants in the tournament's history./.
