Vietnam Top Medal Table at South East Asian Rowing Championships

The rowers from Vietnam dominated the women’s events

Host nation Vietnam won a total of 5 gold and 4 silver medals to finish first overall at the South East Asian Rowing Championships which concluded yesterday on the West Lake in Hanoi. The outstanding performance of the Vietnamese rowers caught many of their rivals by surprise and showed that their preparations for next years South East Asian Games are now well underway.

Seven countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) took part in the Championships with over 40 crews racing in 9 events. Vietnam were particularly powerful in the women’s events, winning all four gold medals. The Philippines meanwhile won four of the five men’s events, placing second overall at the regatta. Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar shared the bronze medals.

It was the first time for Vietnam to host a rowing championship and the event served as an important rehearsal for next year’s South East Asian Games which will also be held in Hanoi during December. After lobbying hard for rowing to the included in the Games, FISA has been working closely with the Hanoi Sports Department and Vietnam Olympic Committee to ensure that adequate technical support is available to enable them to organize a major event.

Prior to the recent Championships, FISA Umpiring Commission member, Mr. Mike Tanner, conducted a National Umpiring Seminar for local Vietnamese umpires. At the same time Development Consultant, Chris Perry, organized a training camp for South East Asian crews. Coaching support has also been provided for the Vietnamese youth team by Hong Kong-based coach Dr. Eric Carter and extensive repairs carried out to boats and equipment with the help of Alan Philips from Australia.

Prof. Hoang Vinh Giang, Secretary General of the Vietnam Olympic Committee and President of the South East Asian Rowing Federation was very pleased with the outcome of the Championships:-

“This is the very first time for us to run an event of this kind and thanks to the support of everyone involved it has gone very well. There is still a lot for us to do before we can host the SEA Games next year but we have learnt a great deal from hosting this Championships. The Vietnamese rowers have also done very well and this will be good for our long-term development.”