Taekwondo is one of the strengths of Da Nang’s high-performance sports. Along with senior athletes, young faces such as Phan Van Quoc and Ngo Truong Nguyen Dai have have actively contributed to the overall achievements of the city's Taekwondo team and are a high hope for the local sports sector in the future.

Phan Van Quoc (left) and Ngo Truong Nguyen Dai are promising Taekwondo athletes in Da Nang. Photo: P.N

Thanks to great efforts of enthusiastic young coaches, and the special care of leaders of the city’s sports sector, a generation of talented and young athletes in Da Nang are gradually asserting themselves in the national and international arenas.

In Taekwondo, Phan Van Quoc, 20, residing in Tam Thuan Ward, Thanh Khe District, is one of the athletes who receive high expectations. Quoc has played sports and showed talent in many kinds of sports since he was a child, in which martial arts are prominent.

In 2017, a physical education teacher at the Hoang Dieu Junior High School, where Quoc studied, introduced him to the coach of the Da Nang Taekwondo team. Realising Quoc’s talent, the coach created conditions for Quoc to live and practice at the Da Nang Athlete Training and Coaching Centre.

Recalling the early days of pursuing a professional sports path, Quoc shared “At that time, I was only a senior high school pupil and had never been away from my family. However, with the spiritual encouragement, support, and facilitation of the teachers, I gradually integrated with my teammates at the Da Nang Youth Taekwondo team. The coaches taught me very enthusiastically, helping me improve my skills every day and develop a great passion for Taekwondo”.

After that, Quoc was facilitated to compete in national youth Taekwondo championships to gain professional experience. He has won many noble medals including a silver medal at the 2019 ASEAN Youth Taekwondo Championship, a gold medal at the 2022 ASEAN Taekwondo Championship, a silver at the 2023 National Taekwondo Championship and many golds at the National Youth Taekwondo Championships.

Currently, Quoc and other young Taekwondo fighters are given good conditions for training, aiming for the National Taekwondo Championships and the 10^th National Sports Festival.

"Martial arts is my passion, so I am very happy to be able to practice and compete regularly. My forte is combat competition. The achieved results are the great motivation for me to continue trying and contributing more to the local sports sector", Quoc confided.

Along with Phan Van Quoc, Ngo Truong Nguyen Dai, 19, residing in Hoa Tien Commune, Hoa Vang District, is also a promising martial artist of the Da Nang Taekwondo team.

After 7 years of training and competing, Dai won a silver medal at the 2022 ASEAN Youth Taekwondo Championship, a silver medal at the 2022 National Youth Taekwondo Championship, and a gold medal at the 2023 National Taekwondo Championship.

Nguyen Dai said “When I was selected to join the city's Taekwondo team at the age of 12, I only hoped that practicing and competing in Taekwondo would help improve my health and flexibility. However, the more I practice, the more I love this kind of sports and I want to win more noble medals to meet the teachers' expectations and contribute to the city's high-performance sports”.

Dai targets to earn a gold medal at the forthcoming National Taekwondo Championships in 2024. In addition, he hopes to continue to be selected for Viet Nam’s Taekwondo team to compete in the Southeast Asian championships.

According to Coach Tran Viet Duc, the Da Nang Taekwondo team, Phan Van Quoc and Ngo Truong Nguyen Dai are two of the promising young athletes of Da Nang’s Taekwondo team who can compete for medals at national and international championships.

These athletes and their teammates at the Da Nang Taekwondo team are given good conditions for training and competition by the coaching staff and the leaders of the Da Nang Athlete Training and Coaching Centre.

Aside from youth tournaments, the martial artists will soon try their hand at national team levels and make professional progress. Hopefully, Van Quoc, Nguyen Dai and teammates continue keeping up the good work, helping the local Taekwondo team reap more success in the future.

Reporting by PHI NONG - Translating by M.DUNG