LookAtVietnam – A delegation of Vietnamese martial artists has left for Thailand for the first Asian Martial Arts Games which will kick off on August 1.

Top of her game: Karate artists Nguyen Hoang Ngan is once again Viet Nam’s favourite at the first Asian Martial Arts Games in Thailand.

Vietnamese contenders are looking a wushu, pencak silat and karate as the three most likely medal opportunities.

Karate artist Nguyen Hoang Ngan will once again top Viet Nam’s hopes. She won a gold medal in the women’s kata (performance) event at the World Games which closed in Taiwan on Sunday.

Ngan is also the defending world champion after taking gold at the World Karate Championships held in Tokyo last November. She previously won golds in the Kobe Osaka International World Cup in Greece in 2006 and 2007 and another at the Paris Open in 2007.

Together Vu Tra My and Vu Thuy Linh represent the best hopes for wushu performers. They pocketed one silver and one bronze medal at the World Games.

Le Thi Hong Ngoan, Tran Van Toan and Le Thi Phi Nga, all world champions who have made names for themselves in world competitions, will aim to take charge of the pencak silat mats.

Muay fighter Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat is expected to surprise the competition after his outstanding Under-57 kg class performance at the Pre-Asian Indoor Games last week in HCM City. Nhat beat his teammate Nguyen Phu Long to win his first international title this year.

The opening ceremony will be on August 1. Taekwondo events will be held first and eight sets of medals will be presented throughout day one. However, most final matches for all events will be organised on August 8 and 9, the last two days of the Games.

Nearly 40 countries and territories, including the rich martial arts countries of China, South Korea, Japan and Thailand, will be sending competitors.

The nine-day competition will take place in four different locations: the Indoor Hua Mark Stadium; the Nimibutr Gymnasium Supachalasai National Stadium; the Bangkok Youth Centre (Thai-Japanese) Stadium; and the Sports School in Suphanburi Province.

The Games were postponed twice previously due to political crisis. They were originally scheduled from April 25 to May 3 and then from June 6 to 14.

For Vietnamese competitors, the Games are considered a warm-up event for the third Asian Indoor Games, which will be hosted by Viet Nam, in November before they head to Laos in hopes of more triumphs at the 25th Southeast Asian Games one month later.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News