The 2023 Talented and Youth Table Tennis Tournaments in Ho Chi Minh City will take place at Hoa Lu Sports Center from June 8-18. This is an opportunity for Ho Chi Minh City table tennis to have quality young talents in the future.

In this tournament, the organizers divided the competition into 2 systems: Talented system and team system with the participation of nearly 400 players from 15 districts and table tennis clubs across the city.

The tournament has nearly 400 players participating in 2 systems: amateur and team. Photo: PH.

In which, the team system includes athletes in the youth teams who have been trained in recent years by Ho Chi Minh City table tennis. Players compete in men's singles, women's singles and team events in the age groups 7-9, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15 and 16-18.

With the grassroots system, players come from grassroots table tennis clubs across districts in Ho Chi Minh City. These grassroots players compete in age groups of 7-9, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15.

HCM City table tennis has built a young force of good quality. But at a higher level, they do not have many outstanding talents. Photo: PH.

Training difficulties

HCM City's grassroots table tennis has developed strongly with many grassroots tournaments. Private clubs have flourished, attracting a large number of practitioners, many of whom have also shown their talent and passion from a very early age.

Mr. Tu Nhan Luan - Head of the Ho Chi Minh City Table Tennis Department said: "Ho Chi Minh City is trying to find new factors to nurture into future talents. This playground is for children to show their talents and thereby reveal their talents. Ho Chi Minh City table tennis is developing strongly in the grassroots system, however, at present, there are still no international-class athletes like in the golden days of the past".

According to Mr. Tu Nhan Luan, Ho Chi Minh City table tennis has no shortage of talented factors. But there are too many objective conditions that have lasted for many years that have prevented them from being highly effective in developing young factors into great talents.

The infrastructure conditions and investment are not strong compared to other provinces and cities, so they are gradually losing their position against strong units in the North such as Hanoi, Hai Duong, CAND.. Since Mai Hoang My Trang retired from the national team, Ho Chi Minh City table tennis has only had Nguyen Khoa Dieu Khanh remaining in the team.

Although Dieu Khanh is considered to have outstanding potential, he has shown signs of slowing down in terms of expertise compared to other players who are being heavily invested in by their management units and are regularly trained in China.

Amateur table tennis in Ho Chi Minh City is developing strongly. Photo: H.G

In fact, Ho Chi Minh City does not have a true sports center for athletes to eat, stay and practice centrally. Most athletes return home after training. Therefore, when the coaching staff wants to increase the intensity of training to calculate the drop point or enhance professional development, it is not guaranteed.

On the other hand, Ho Chi Minh City table tennis players have not been able to go abroad for training for a long time. Along with that, for many years, Ho Chi Minh City has not had the conditions to invite international experts to develop professional skills for athletes.