On the evening of 23 September, the closing ceremony of the 9th Southeast Asian Games for athletes with disabilities (ASEAN Para Games) took place at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium in the capital, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), bringing to a close a successful Games full of humanity for athletes with disabilities in the region.
At ASEAN Para Games 2017, the Vietnamese team of athletes with disabilities won a total of 161 medals of all kinds, finishing fourth overall. Of the team’s 40 gold medals, athletics contributed the most with 17, followed by swimming with 15. The powerlifting and chess teams also won 4 gold medals each. Notably, all four athletes who won powerlifting gold for Vietnam set new Games records. The athletes who broke a Para Games record were Le Van Cong, Nguyen Binh An, Dang Thi Linh Phuong and Chau Hoang Tuyet Loan (all in powerlifting), Vi Thi Hang (swimming) and Le Van Manh (athletics).
At these Games, the Vietnamese team of athletes with disabilities sent 142 athletes, competing in 158 events across 8 of the 16 sports, including: swimming, athletics, powerlifting, chess, badminton, boccia, blind football and table tennis.
The results achieved by the Vietnamese team of athletes with disabilities at ASEAN Para Games 2017 showed very thorough preparation by the athletes. With what they have shown, the Vietnamese athletes promise to perform well at upcoming international competitions, especially in strong sports such as swimming and athletics.
The closing ceremony of ASEAN Para Games 2017 was brief, moving and colourful. The images shown by the organising committee at the closing ceremony showed the audience the determination of athletes with disabilities who overcome everything to train, compete and integrate into the community. They came to sport and trained hard to bring glory to their country.
Speaking at the closing ceremony, Mr Osoth Bhavilai, President of the ASEAN Para Sports Federation (APSF), thanked the Government and the host organising committee, and thanked the volunteers and Malaysian fans who had accompanied the Games and played an important part in their success. Mr Osoth Bhavilai affirmed that during the days of competition, more than 1,300 athletes with disabilities from countries in the region had shown courage, will, determination to overcome difficulties and noble sportsmanship. They had created wonderful moments over the past days. They deserved to be honoured. Before the programme ended, host Malaysia performed a spectacular sound and light show to bid farewell to the audience and the athletes with disabilities. The closing ceremony also saw the flag handover to the Philippines, host of the 30th SEA Games and the 10th ASEAN Para Games.
QUOC KHANH (compiled) – http://www.qdnd.vn