【kq alaves】The first sports family contest in Hue

A father and son’s doubles table tennis kq alavesmatch at the Provincial Sports Family contest in 2017

Double benefit

This year, the Department of Culture and Sports decided on the Sports Family contest as the main activity to celebrate the Vietnamese Family Day (June 28) in particular and to carry out the family operations in 2017 in general. Thanks to its novelty, the contest gathered over 120 athletes from many families of districts, towns and Hue city and initially showed efficiency. Ms. Duong Ha Uyen, Deputy Head of the Culture and Sports Division in Phu Vang District, said: "Every year, the Department of Culture and Sports organizes cultural performances or cooking competitions, but this year, we opt for sports family contest. This novelty creates a sense of excitement for participants."

Mr. Nguyen Van Uy, Deputy Head of Culture and Sports Division in Huong Tra Town said that for a long time only sports tournaments for state agencies or localities have been organized, so this new type of contest is enjoyed by families. In addition to enhancing health and family bonds, the contest is also seen as an  opportunity for socialization and relationship development.

According to Mr Le Xuan Binh, Deputy Director of Department of Culture and Sports, the Sports Family contest is a playground with double benefits. First of all, the contest further bonds the family members with each other. The Sports Family is characterized by at least a couple or a couple and their children participating in the contest. Before the contest, they regularly practice together to create opportunities to get closer and understand each other. Through the competition, the responsibility of all levels, branches, social organizations and families in building a prosperous, progressive, happy and sustainable family is enhanced. This is also a "lever" to promote the development of sport movement in public, and contribute to an increase in the number of regular sport players in the province, thereby implementing the campaign "All people do physical exercise to the mirror of great Uncle Ho."

The sports family is also a criterion of the sports sector. Creating contests will stimulate the development of sport practice movement in families. "Every year, the country has family contests, but so far, in Hue only a few families have participated. Nowadays, with this type of contest, the sports sector finds it easier to evaluate the movement of physical exercise and sports, and the competitiveness of family members in localities and branches, and thereby select athletes to participate in the national tournaments," Mr Binh said.

Mr Le Quy Anh Hung, representative of families from Huong Thuy Town, said: "I have been passionate about table tennis for 10 years. This year, the Department of Culture and Sports organizes the sports family contest which is very good. Through practicing together, family members have more love for each other. If this activity is maintained, there will be prospects to develop community sports."

Need to promote and replicate

Mr Le Xuan Binh, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture and Sports, said that besides creating a new playground for family activities, this contest is an experimentation with the diversity of family activities, becoming a premise for the next year. With initial success, Department of Culture and Sports will do more research to make the contest more effective.

Mr. Le Ngoc Tu, Head of Sports Management Office (Department of Culture and Sports), said that at the Sports Family Contest next years there would be more types of match such as brothers’ doubles, sisters’ doubles, siblings’ mixed doubles ... It is possible to expand the participants to the families from state agencies. In addition, it is necessary to mobilize units and enterprises to support the funding to increase the prize structure that helps to attract participants.

In order to ensure the sustainability and quality of the Sports Family contest at the province level, it is necessary to organize it at the district and civels in advance. This is a playground that has many benefits recognized by the participants in the localities so the organization of the lower level will be advantageous. It is also a way to spread the movement of community sports, thereby preserving the good values ​​of the family.

By Minh Tam