Local shooters aim to regain top position in Southeast Asia

Typically shooting has never represented a popular sport for the Vietnamese team during the past SEA Games. The 2019 regional event held in the Philippines for instance saw local shooters leave empty handed.

The 31-member national team are now training hard, striving to shoot at their set target and bring Vietnam back to the top position in Southeast Asia.

The SEA Games 31 to be hosted by Vietnam represents a special occasion for the national shooting team as the training and competition venue at the Hanoi-based National Sports Training Center has been upgraded.

The team therefore have more time than others to adapt to the new shooting range ahead of the coming competitions. They have particularly gained valuable experience from recent national shooting tournaments held in mid-April, while competing against strong rivals from Singapore and Indonesia.

The national shooting team boast several outstanding faces who are familiar with regional and international tournaments. Hoang Xuan Vinh who won the 2016 Olympics gold medal will take part as coach for the team for the first time.

Local marksmen won’t be put under any extra pressure because the coaching board wants them to feel at ease before the start of competitions, Xuan Vinh shared.

Vinh’s teammate Tran Quoc Cuong is one of the few local shooters to attend both the 2003 and 2022 iterations of the SEA Games and is aiming for a gold medal in his final participation at the regional sporting event.

Cuong was called up to the national shooting team in 1995. Since then he has participated in nine SEA Games and won 14 golds, with his most recent gold medal coming at the 2015 event in Singapore.

The 48-year-old shooter is now full of energy and determination to win a gold medal in Hanoi before retiring and moving into coaching.

Regional athletes will compete in shooting at the Hanoi-based National Sports Training Center from May 16 to May 22.