Vietnam hopes to claim quarter of gold medals at SEA Games 31
VOV.VN - Host Vietnam has set a target of winning 140 out of a total of 526 gold medals at the upcoming 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31), making up a quarter of the overall medal tally.
The country also anticipates that it will obtain 140 silver and bronze medals to top the medal tally.
During the two most recent games, the host countries bagged over 140 golds each, with Malaysia earning 145 out of a total of 406 gold medals in 2017, and the Philippines winning 149 out of a total of 531 gold medals in 2019.
At the Southeast Asian Games held for the first time in Vietnam in 2003, local athletes grabbed 158 out of a total of 444 golds to lead the medal tally.
The Vietnamese sporting delegation will now focus on sports which are competitive at the Asian Games (ASIAD) and Olympic Games.
Local track-and-field athletes are expected to win over 16 gold medals as happened at the SEA Games in 2019 and break the record of 17 gold medals set at the 2017 event.
Athletes in swimming, karate, taekwondo, judo, and shooting will strive to win between five and nine gold medals each.
Most notably, both the men’s and women’s football team have set the goal of defending their championship titles they won in the Philippines in 2019.
Approximately 7,000 athletes from 11 countries are due to compete at the region’s largest sporting event which is due to take place in Hanoi and 11 neighbouring provinces from May 12 to May 23.
Vietnam has registered the largest number of athletes with more than 1,100 participants, followed by Thailand with 1,036, Indonesia with 1,001, and Malaysia with 815.
