The sport 's administrators have spent a lot of time together discussing and finding solutions to restore the position of Vietnamese Taekwondo on the world map. And 2025 is marking a bold new chapter with the goal set not only in specific medals at the 33rd SEA Games but also a comprehensive "reconstruction", towards Olympic stature, with a methodical strategy and calculated steps.
The achievement that Vietnamese Taekwondo won at the 2025 CJ Vietnam International Taekwondo Open (G1) is considered a good sign for the path to regaining the top.
Roadmap to find the top
General Secretary of the Vietnam Taekwondo Federation Nguyen Thanh Huy openly acknowledged the "gaps" of Vietnamese Taekwondo such as: Lack of strategic depth, high-speed competition techniques, limited frequency of international competitions and very limited sports science infrastructure. Domestic tournaments are not strong enough to create a standard playground for athletes to compete, athletes lack a modern training environment and technical-tactical analysis technology is not popular. As a result, the number of Olympic spots has decreased sharply and the ticket to Paris 2024 has slipped out of reach.
In that context, the workshop "Vietnam Taekwondo - joining forces, creating the pinnacle: innovation - solidarity - towards the Olympics" held last June became an event that reoriented Vietnam Taekwondo with the gathering of international experts, managers and especially the strategic sponsor CJ Group (Korea). At the workshop, the Vietnam Taekwondo Federation set a goal for the 2025-2028 period of winning at least 3 gold medals at the 33rd SEA Games (Thailand), striving to win 1 silver medal at the 2026 ASIAD and striving to win 1 ticket to the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. These are not just numbers, but also challenges that Vietnam Taekwondo must overcome in order to return to the Olympic medal race after 2030.
Screening for SEA Games 33
Unlike previous SEA Games, Vietnam Taekwondo's preparations for the 33rd SEA Games are being carried out in a methodical and highly professional manner right from the beginning. The center of this preparation is the two most important tournaments taking place in Ho Chi Minh City at the end of June: the National Youth Taekwondo Championship - CJ 2025 and the CJ Vietnam International Taekwondo Open 2025 (G1).
These are not only playgrounds for martial artists to show themselves, but also opportunities for the coaching board to select the most elite squad. Sharing about the importance of these two tournaments, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Huy said: "Through the above two tournaments, excellent athletes are selected, thereby forming the Vietnam Taekwondo team to participate in the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand in December. This creates a healthy but also determined internal competition, when each martial artist must make every effort to win a place in the official squad."
In particular, the 2025 CJ Vietnam Open International Tournament is the first G1 event hosted by Vietnam. This is extremely important as Vietnamese martial artists can accumulate world ranking points for the first time right at home, get used to the pressure of a standard international tournament, with electronic armor and video replays thoroughly applied. This is a great step forward in professionalizing and internationalizing the training and competitive environment of Vietnamese Taekwondo - something that was almost non-existent before.
Training hard towards SEA Games 33 with the highest determination
In preparation for the Games, which is of great importance not only to Taekwondo in particular but also to Vietnamese Sports in general, the training atmosphere at the Vietnamese Taekwondo team is "hotter" than ever. Famous martial artists such as: Tran Thi Anh Tuyet, Truong Thi Kim Tuyen, or Bac Thi Khiem... along with young faces, are all entering a period of high-intensity training.
Head coach of the national Taekwondo team Vu Anh Tuan said: 14 players are focusing with high determination towards the best results at the 33rd SEA Games and further at the 2026 ASIAD. Besides Tran Thi Anh Tuyet, Truong Thi Kim Tuyen, or Bac Thi Khiem who are maintaining their form, there are also new factors being tested. Based on the results of some international tournaments and some upcoming tournaments, the coaching board will evaluate and select the final force to participate in the 33rd SEA Games.
Although the difficulties are great, what the Vietnamese Taekwondo team showed at the recent CJ Vietnam Open International Taekwondo Tournament 2025 is considered a positive signal. And the achievement of 8 gold medals at this tournament is an important stepping stone, a testament to the serious preparation of Vietnamese Taekwondo in the journey to conquer the peaks. However, to achieve the Olympic goal and even the gold medal at the 33rd SEA Games, Vietnamese Taekwondo needs to continue investing in competing with truly formidable opponents, as well as developing the depth of young talent.
The 33rd SEA Games is not only a regional tournament, but also an important "test" for the strategy of "innovation - solidarity - towards the Olympics" that Vietnam Taekwondo is pursuing. With thorough preparation, high determination from the martial artists, and strong support from partners, fans expect Vietnam Taekwondo to not only be stronger, more courageous, ready to rewrite a new chapter on the sports map of Southeast Asia, and further, the world.
Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/taekwondo-viet-nam-quyet-tam-dat-thanh-tich-cao-nhat-tai-sea-games-33-20250707105929389.htm
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