In 2015, I visited Hanoi en route to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon). My siblings and I also took an overnight cruise in Halong Bay, a favorite tourist destination where one travels around on thousands of isles. While Ho Chi Minh City is more “westernized”, Hanoi is filled with historical and cultural delights. Ho Chi Minh was the capital of the French colony of Cochin China and later of the independent Republic of South Vietnam (1955 to 1975). One of my favorite spots is the Cu Chi Tunnels, a network of tunnels extending over 250 kilometers. No wonder the Americans had a hard time finding the Vietcongs. The Vietnamese have a big fighting heart. History says Ho Chi Minh fought for independence against France, defeating the French forces at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The Vietnamese also drove away the Americans from Saigon in 1973 and finally over ran the South in 1975. I saw the two tanks that were the first to run through the fence of the Reunification Palace, on display at the palace grounds during our visit.
31st SEA Games
Now back to sports, the 31st SEA Games will be held in Hanoi in November this year (hopefully, the coronavirus will slow down by then), with 40 sports events on tap. The last time Vietnam hosted the Games was in 2003. In the last five stagings of the Games, Vietnam has improved a lot, claiming second place in 2019 by hauling 28 gold, 85 silver and 105 bronze medals. It’s common knowledge that the host country enjoys homecourt advantage and oftentimes end up as champions. Another thing going for the Vietnamese is their very low Covid cases. As I write this piece, Vietnam is way below the ladder of Southeast Asia countries afflicted by the virus. It has only less than 2,000 cases with 35 deaths. The athletes thus have the luxury to train with their sports facilities opened at full capacity. In contrast, our athletes training for the Tokyo Olympics entered a “bubble” training camp in Calamba, Laguna. The Philippines is second to Indonesia in Covid cases with over 500,000 infected and 11,000 deaths.
Olympic gold
While we continue to dream for our first olympic gold medal, Vietnam boast of having one. In the 2016 Rio Olympics , Hoang Xuan Vinh won the gold medal in the mens 10 meter-air pistol event. The Vietnamese have also become a terror in the track oval, ruling the middle distance events in the last SEA Games in Tarlac City. My prediction? Vietnam will be chamoion in Hanoi.
DID YOU KNOW?
Mark Beaumont
Of Scotland who was born on New Year’s Day in 1983, pedalled throughthe Arc De Triomphe in Paris on February 14, 2008. After 194 days 17 hours, he had circumnavigated the world, covering 18, 297 miles (29, 446 km), smashing the Guinness World record by an amazing 81 days. He traveled alone and unsupported through some of the harshest conditions, a man and his bicycle can tolerate, avaraging 160 kilometers a day and suffering from and constant 160 kilometers a day and suffering from constant ailments, hunger and fatigue. Beaumont wrote a book in 2009 “The Man Who Cycled The World”, which became a best seller.
Quotes:
What’s the difference between a puppy and a sportswriter? In six weeks the puppy stops whining.
“Joe Frazier’s so ugly, they ought to donate his face to the World Wildlife Fund”---Muhammad Ali
NOTES: A runner from a mountain barangay asked me if PSC commisioner Ramon Fernandez is also a good cook. He said Mon was recently appointed Chef De Mission to the Hanoi Games. I told him “Yes, Mon has the ingredients for success”.