Vietnam women's football team carries torch and raises flag on Fansipan peak

After returning from the 2023 World Cup, coach Mai Duc Chung and his team visited Sun World Fansipan Legend, performing the sacred and proud flag-raising ceremony at the sacred Fansipan peak.

Sa Pa and Sun World Fansipan Legend are the first tourist destinations of coach Mai Duc Chung and his team after returning from the 2023 World Cup. Despite stopping early, the team has marked an important milestone for Vietnamese women's football, when for the first time they attended the World Cup, one of the biggest football tournaments in the world , competing and competing with other excellent teams around the world.

Flag raising ceremony at Fansipan on the morning of August 19

On the morning of August 19, in the cool weather of the sacred Fansipan peak, 8 coaches of the national team and 25 players attended the flag-raising and torch-carrying ceremony. The players placed their hands on their hearts, bowed before the national flag in the Northwest sky, sang the national anthem, and felt the national pride flowing through their veins.

Present at that sacred moment on top of Fansipan, hundreds of tourists warmly welcomed, shook hands with the players, and shouted "Vietnam is the champion" many times, making the "diamond girls" emotional.

The torch relay was held right after the flag-raising ceremony, affirming the team's determination and indomitable spirit before the upcoming 19th ASIAD season in China.

Emotional moment of coach Mai Duc Chung and his students in the ceremony

After the flag-raising ceremony, coach Mai Duc Chung shared: “Our women's team, when competing at the recent World Cup, had the greatest honor of being able to salute the flag and sing the national anthem in front of all Vietnamese and international audiences in the stands and on television. As those who were directly present at that moment, we felt boundless pride. However, today's flag-raising ceremony at the sacred peak of Fansipan was so touching, it will forever be engraved in my mind, when we were present at the highest mountain in the country, the highest in Indochina, a sacred destination of the country to sing the national anthem. What's even more strange is that even though it was sometimes rainy, sometimes sunny, when the flag was raised high and everyone sang together, the sky cleared up, to me that was probably the support of heaven and earth for our team and our country.”

The coach also shared that what moved him the most was when the team went up to the flag-raising ceremony, there were many tourists there, but everyone stood to one side, leaving the flagpole floor for the team. “The love and affection that the tourists have for the women’s team will be forever engraved in my heart,” he said.

On the same day, the coach and the players attended the Vu Lan ceremony of 100 local Buddhists at the Fansipan cultural and spiritual complex. During the ceremony, 500 lotus flowers donated by Buddhists were arranged into flower platforms, respectfully carried from Bao An Thien Tu - the cable car station area to the Great Amitabha Buddha Statue and Kim Son Bao Thang Tu on the top of Fansipan.

During the ceremony, Buddhists pinned roses on their chests, sincerely wishing their parents well during the Vu Lan season. The Vietnamese women's team also wore beautiful flower trays, offered them before the Great Amitabha Buddha Statue, and prayed for their parents' health and peace.

The team members also shared that when returning to the Fansipan spiritual and cultural complex, they sincerely wished for the team to achieve higher results at the 2019 ASIAD.

Tourists at Fansipan peak welcomed the team and gathered to attend the flag-raising ceremony.

In addition to meaningful cultural and spiritual experiences, the team enjoyed Northwest cuisine at Van Sam restaurant at Sun World Fansipan Legend, and stayed at Hotel de la Coupole - MGallery Sapa. In the evening, they also spent time walking and visiting the town center.

Expressing his honor to welcome the delegation, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Chien - Director of Sun World Fansipan Legend shared: "When the women's team came to Fansipan, I thought of the increasingly rising image of the 'Roof of Indochina', when this place is always moving, rising 4.3m higher than a century ago. With the increasing efforts and determination of the brave girls, I believe that their faith and strength will be further fostered, to reach even higher achievements, bringing pride to the country".

After the journey of conquering and touching the sacred milestone of Fansipan peak, we can be completely confident that the team will increasingly achieve impressive achievements, bringing pride to the country and millions of fans.

Thanhnien.vn