These are impressive achievements, not only showing the efforts and prowess of Vietnamese paddlers but also serving as proof of the sports sector’s strategic and systematic investment.

At the Southeast Asian arena, Vietnamese athletes won three gold medals and two bronze medals. The three gold medals respectively belonged to Pham Hong Quan in the C1 500m event; the pair of Nguyen Thi Huong and Diep Thi Huong in the C2 500m event and the duo of Ma Thi Thuy and Nguyen Thi Huong in the women’s 200m double boat event. Not only winning medals, the Vietnamese athletes also demonstrated their outstanding competitive spirit when facing many strong regional opponents such as Thailand and Indonesia.

Having to compete in three major tournaments within a week but still maintaining peak form has affirmed the thorough preparations in terms of expertise, physical condition, and competitive spirit of the whole team.

Besides the veteran faces, young athletes such as Diep Thi Huong, Nguyen Hong Thai, Mai Thi Thuy, Phung Ngoc Diem, Mac Thi Thanh Thuy, Ma Thi Dieu Ngoc, and Tran Thi Quynh also competed outstandingly, making significant contributions to the overall achievements. Most notable was the historic achievement of the women’s quadruple sculls team when they won a silver medal for the first time at the Asian U23 Championship. Four young girls Hoang Thi Huong, Bui Mai Hanh, Hoang Thi Lam, and Nguyen Thi Mai competed steadfastly, creating a memorable milestone in the development journey of Vietnamese canoeing at the continental level.

These impressive results in Thailand not only reflected the remarkable growth of the athletes, but also showed the clear effectiveness of the long-term investment strategy for canoeing. This is also the perfect warm-up for the 33rd SEA Games, an important sporting event that will take place in Thailand later this year, where canoeing continues to be selected as an official competitive sport. With promising young athletes, extensive competition experience, and a well-built physical and technical foundation, Vietnamese canoeists are taking stead steps on the journey to affirm their position in the region and aim for larger arenas such as the Asian Games or Olympics./.