More resources, more power

After merging administrative units, the new Ho Chi Minh City not only expanded its area and population, but also opened up opportunities for breakthrough development in the field of sports - on the basis of consolidating the strengths of the three previous localities: Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong province and Ba Ria - Vung Tau province.

Expanding space, increasing strength

Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Sports Training and Competition Center Ly Dai Nghia acknowledged: “Ho Chi Minh City Sports has long played a leading role in the country, not only because of its outstanding performance but also because of its dynamism in applying science and technology to training. However, the city's sports still have bottlenecks that hinder its development, such as increasingly limited land funds, many projects and facilities have degraded, and the system of discovering and training young talents is facing difficulties due to a lack of adjacent resources. The system of facilities has not yet met the training needs of the people, and the need to improve the level of training for athletes is also an issue that needs to be paid attention to.”

Those bottlenecks that seemed to take a long time to be resolved, now have a way out. At the conference to discuss the draft project to reorganize the Department of Culture and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City and the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the two provinces of Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau , which took place before the historic moment of July 1, Director of the Department of Culture and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City Tran The Thuan affirmed: There is no thinking of merging this unit into that unit, but rather unification to maximize the strengths of each locality, complement and complement each other, forming a leading national cultural and sports super center.

Ba Ria - Vung Tau (old) hosts many beach sports . Photo: DUNG PHUONG

Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Sports Training and Competition Center Ly Dai Nghia said that after the merger of the three localities, Ho Chi Minh City sports will form a triangle of sustainable development. Ho Chi Minh City (old) will be the center for training high-level athletes, coordinating the city-wide sports training system, and being a place for sports science research and creating a smart sports economic market.

Binh Duong province (old) with its rapid industrialization and satellite urban system, with a large youth force, is considered a "gold mine" for selecting talented athletes, from which to train them intensively to become the next generation of talented people. Meanwhile, with the advantage of blue sea, temperate climate and modern infrastructure, Ba Ria - Vung Tau province (old) has great potential to organize large-scale sea sports tournaments, attracting athletes and tourists from all over.

“The merger will bring a breath of fresh air to the sports industry. In terms of expertise, we have the exchange and support between high-class coaches and athletes, working together to improve their performance. In terms of facilities, Ho Chi Minh City can make the most of resources from Ba Ria - Vung Tau to improve training conditions for the teams, possibly with outdoor training trips right in the city. This is also a favorable condition for the new Ho Chi Minh City to host many national and international events in the future,” said Mr. Phung Nguyen Tuong Minh, Head of the Department of Sports Management (former Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ba Ria - Vung Tau).

Many outstanding achievements

At the 32nd SEA Games in 2023, Ho Chi Minh City contributed to the Vietnamese sports delegation with 179/1,003 members, winning 31 gold medals, 24 silver medals, and 20 bronze medals. Meanwhile, Binh Duong sports participated in the tournament with 17 members, contributing to the overall achievement with 1 gold medal, 2 silver medals, and 6 bronze medals. Ba Ria - Vung Tau sports contributed 6 members, contributing to the achievement of 2 gold medals, 1 silver medal, and 3 bronze medals.

According to the report on professional activities of the Department of Sports and Physical Training (Department of Culture and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City), in the first 6 months of 2025, Ho Chi Minh City Sports Department has carried out the work of reviewing and recruiting sports teams in the year with the number of 2,850 coaches and athletes. The unit has sent more than 300 sports teams to participate in domestic and international competitions, winning a total of 1,014 medals (361 gold, 331 silver, 322 bronze).

Meanwhile, Binh Duong sports is currently investing in 29 sports, with 828 athletes, 145 coaches, participating in national and international sports tournaments, winning 454 medals. For Ba Ria - Vung Tau sports, in the first 6 months of 2025, it hosted 23 national sports tournaments and successfully organized the Asian U17 and U23 wrestling championships. The unit sent 76 teams to participate in domestic and international tournaments, winning a total of 411 medals (107 gold, 110 silver, 194 bronze).

Join forces to host the National Sports Festival

The merger of sports units is not only a change in organizational structure, but also a big step forward in the strategy of developing sports in Ho Chi Minh City, ensuring the apparatus operates effectively and better meets the needs of society.

Deputy Director of the Department of Culture and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Nam Nhan confided: “Two years ago, Ho Chi Minh City was given the responsibility of hosting the 10th National Sports Festival in 2026 with a scale of 12,000 athletes. But the current situation at that time was a wake-up call for professionals when the sports facilities had deteriorated, for more than 20 years there had been no major renovations, and there were no new projects.”

The race to prepare for the congress has begun, from investment procedures to infrastructure construction work, all are being vigorously promoted. Up to now, 4 renovation, repair and upgrade projects have broken ground, including: Hoa Lu Sports Center, Phu Tho Swimming and Diving Club, Phu Tho Sports Gymnasium, Phu Tho Sports Training Center. In particular, the project to build a new Center for Talented Athlete Training in Hoa Lu and the project to renovate and upgrade Thong Nhat Stadium are expected to be implemented in the third and fourth quarters of 2025, respectively.

That race will no longer be lonely when Ho Chi Minh City sports has been empowered by Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau sports. In recent times, the units have proactively connected and coordinated in the industry merger work, while preparing for the important goal of successfully organizing the National Sports Festival in 2026, the largest sports event in Vietnam with a cycle of organization every 4 years.

Head of the Department of Sports Management Phung Nguyen Tuong Minh said that every year, Ba Ria - Vung Tau (old) hosts about 30 national tournaments based on the existing infrastructure, and that is also considered a test of all the required conditions for the 2026 National Sports Festival. With its strengths in beaches and hotel accommodation systems, Ba Ria - Vung Tau takes on the responsibility of hosting 10 sports at the 2026 National Sports Festival.

Meanwhile, Binh Duong (old) will host 5 official competitions at the congress: Boxing, Jujitsu, Petanque, Dance Sports and Cycling. Notably, the road cycling competition, with beautiful routes, ensuring quality and safety, stretching through many areas: Bau Bang, Ben Cat, Thu Dau Mot, Tan Uyen or Thuan An, the organizing committee fully meets the most stringent requirements for the racers to compete. In addition, in the last 6 months of the year, the Petanque stadium will soon be completed, fully meeting the highest requirements of a national-level tournament.

“The 2026 National Sports Festival is expected to be not only an event, but also the beginning of a new sports industry in Ho Chi Minh City - where organizational capacity, facilities and spirit of conquest all reach a new level,” said Nguyen Nam Nhan, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture and Sports.

Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Nam Nhan:

The formation of a new city including Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau will give the city's sports more resources, more institutions and more internal strength. This will be a big push to build a modern, unique sports center with nationwide influence.

Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ho Chi Minh City Cao Van Chong:

With the merger of Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, and Ba Ria - Vung Tau, we need to inherit and selectively integrate effective policies from the three previous localities, aiming to form a regional ecosystem with a multi-center structure, operated according to modern, transparent, scientific, and professional thinking. The sports sector is not outside that trend. The new Ho Chi Minh City sports industry continues to move forward, consolidating its leading position in the country, from mass sports to high-performance sports and professional sports.

NGUYEN ANH

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/them-nguon-luc-them-suc-manh-post802219.html