The Vietnamese team won golds in the men's and women's singles on August 21 and another gold in the mix doubles event yesterday, reported Nhan Dan Newspaper correspondents in France.
Head coach Nguyen Tuyet Cuong, who won nine world championship titles, said that his team aimed to protect their overall throne at the first world shuttlecock tournament held in France, from August 21 to 24.
In the first day of the tournament, players from 15 teams around the world competed in the men’s and women's singles, in which the Vietnamese soon showed their class.
In the men's singles, Ho Phuoc Sang easily qualified for the final, before trouncing his Chinese opponent 21-10, 21-18 in two straight sets to successfully defend his world championship title, collected in Hong Kong (China) two years ago.
 |
Ho Phuoc Sang (C) crowned the men's singles champion.
In the women's singles, Vietnamese Pham Thi To Nguyen also easily overcame the qualifying round to book her final berth against another Chinese player. To Nguyen then beat her opponent in a thrilling match to clinch a narrow victory at 22-20, 21-19, also successfully defending the world championship’s tittle that she won two years ago in Hong Kong (China).
The second day of the tournament, on Thursday, was for the mixed doubles event, witnessing the Vietnamese pair Tran Ngoc Hai and Trinh Thi Nga beating their Chinese rivals in the semifinals to progress to the title-deciding match against a Hong Kong (China) pair – who beat Vietnam 2-0 in the group stage.
Surprisingly, before entering the final, male player Tran Ngoc Hai suffered from a cramp during his warm-up, for which he required medical treatment. Hai was almost exhausted after their previous tense matches with the Chinese and Hong Kong teams. The championship title would be granted to the Hong Kong pair if Hai was unable to compete, however, he fortunately returned to the court just in time thanks to the medical care. The duo then produced a superb performance to avenge their previous loss, as beating their Hong Kong rivals 2-0 at 21-17, 21-19 in two straight sets to bring home the third championship titles.
 |
Pham Thi To Nguyen (C) claims the women's singles title.
The third day of competition, Friday, continues with the men's and women's doubles.
The 10th Shuttlecock World Championships bring together the participation of 15 teams who are members of the International Shuttlecock Federation (ISF), including hosts France, Vietnam, Germany, Hungary, Austria, Hong Kong (China), Chinese Taipei, Macau (China), China and the ISF team, among others.
