Asiad 20 Day September 29: Sepak Takraw Wins Gold, Athletics Draws Blank

45 minutes on the sidelines, a lifetime that never grows old.

On the morning of September 29 in Aichi–Nagoya, while the Vietnamese delegation's competitions had not yet begun, there was a brief silence in the stands of the sepak takraw arena. I sat there, looking at the competition schedule, and realized something: whenever we talk about gold medals, we tend to talk about the sports we are used to winning. Meanwhile, athletics – considered the measure of a nation's sporting development – is quietly receiving results that fall short of expectations.

On the Russian stands, I heard many empty seats named after women.

The story of the September 29 competition day does not begin on the track. It begins on a sepak takraw court, where Vietnamese athletes stepped in with the expectation of defeating the Philippines. In the past, Vietnamese sepak takraw had an edge over this opponent at SEA Games. That expectation was not unfounded, and it was rewarded with a dominant victory of 15-8 and 15-4. An impressive start to September 29.

But while joy came from sepak takraw, the overall picture of the Vietnamese delegation reveals a familiar paradox: the sports that can deliver immediate gold medals are doing very well, while the foundational sports – like athletics – are still struggling to find their footing.

When the stadium is empty, ordinary voices suddenly become leaders.

As of this point in Asiad 20, the Vietnamese delegation has won 2 gold, 1 silver, and 17 bronze medals, placing in the top 20. The delegation's target is 4 golds. Looking at the medal table, a clear strategy emerges: accumulate bronze medals to secure a top-20 position while focusing on a few sports capable of delivering gold to meet the target.

This approach is not tactically wrong. But it raises a major question about sustainability. When the remaining hopes of the delegation are identified as only boxing, shooting, and sepak takraw, athletics – the central sport of any Games – has been excluded from the medal plan before the final days even conclude.

What does this mean? It means that from the moment they entered Asiad 20, Vietnamese sports authorities did not believe athletics could deliver gold. This is not speculation. It is a signal sent unintentionally through the allocation of expectations.

Looking at the scoreboard, I learned to read what is not written.

Let us look at the specific results of Vietnamese athletics at this Asiad. In the women's high jump, Dương Thị Thảo finished 6th. In the women's 4x400m relay, Vietnam finished 5th. And in the men's 4x400m relay, Vietnam finished last in the final.

No technical data – no times, no heights, no wind speeds – were recorded in this report. This means all assessments must be read as relative results within Asia, not against any absolute standard. But even reading relatively, the picture is clear: Vietnam is in the competitive but not yet medal-contending group.

A contract has an expiration date, but a life story does not.

More notable than the finishing positions is how the athletics team was built. In the relay entries, the names mentioned are all veterans: Nguyễn Thị Ngọc, Quách Thị Lan, Nguyễn Thị Hằng in the women's events; Tạ Ngọc Tưởng and Trần Nhật Hoàng in the men's events. The original report's author wrote that these veterans "brought many expectations."

That is a polite way of putting it. But reading closely, it reveals another reality: Vietnamese athletics is dependent on a group of athletes who are at or past their peak. Meanwhile, there is no signal of a successor generation capable of carrying the load at the continental level.

This is the crux. The problem of Vietnamese athletics at Asiad 20 is not that we are slower. The problem is that we lack depth. A relay team that reaches the final but finishes last, or 5th, often reflects a baton-handling or lineup issue rather than a pure speed issue. But to compete for medals, you need both: speed and depth.

Esports taught me that victory is never just on the screen.

There is a detail worth pondering. While athletics won no medals, sepak takraw – a sport where Vietnam has tradition – is the main source of gold medals. Shooting and boxing have also been identified as sports capable of delivering more gold. This reveals a paradox in how resources and expectations are allocated: we are betting on sports where we have short-term advantages instead of investing in sports with long-term foundational value.

No one can deny the value of gold medals from sepak takraw. But if we only focus on sports that can deliver immediate medals, the question is: what will happen to athletics – the sport considered the measure of a developed sports nation – in 5 or 10 years?

After every goal, I ask: which woman lost sleep over that?

Returning to the track and field athletes. They are people who have devoted their youth to training. They are people who have committed to the track, to the stadium, to early morning sessions and late afternoon practices. They do not need our pity. They need us to understand that their achievements are not measured only by medals.

Dương Thị Thảo finished 6th in the women's high jump. That is not the expected result, but it does not mean she failed. The women's 4x400m relay team finished 5th. That is not a medal-winning result, but it does not mean they did not try. The men's 4x400m relay team finished last in the final. That is a disappointing result, but it does not mean they do not deserve recognition.

In women's football, there are no days off, only untold stories.

The story of Vietnamese athletics at Asiad 20 is an incompletely told story. It is not just a story about finishing positions. It is a story about a system lacking depth. It is a story about a generation of athletes at the end of their careers. It is a story about a future not yet shaped.

As the Vietnamese delegation aims for 4 gold medals, and as remaining hopes are placed in boxing, shooting, and sepak takraw, we need to remember that athletics is not a sport that can be forgotten. It is the foundation. It is the measure. And if we do not invest in it, the gold medals from sepak takraw or shooting will only be short-term joys, unable to replace sustainable development.

When the stadium is empty, ordinary voices suddenly become leaders.

The question is not whether Vietnamese athletics failed at Asiad 20. The question is: what will we do next? Will we continue to depend on veterans, or will we start building a successor generation? Will we continue betting on sports with short-term advantages, or will we invest in sports with long-term foundational value?

These are questions that no gold medal can answer for us.