Binh Dinh billiards flourishes

At the 2023 National Billiards - Snooker Championship (Round 1), Binh Dinh players achieved unexpected success. This is considered an important milestone, creating confidence for athletes in the following tournaments.

The 2023 National Billiards - Snooker Championship (Round 1) took place from March 13 to 23 in Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan Province, attracting nearly 1,600 athletes. Of which, the 3-cushion carom event had nearly 1,300 athletes registered to compete. This is considered one of the most difficult competitions, because to reach the final round, the players have to go through a difficult journey. Not only did it gather many excellent players from all over the country, but just keeping track of the competition schedule with different time slots was also a big challenge. In the first rounds, many players left the stadium when the clock was about to strike a new day.

Player Huynh Xuan Chau still showed his class at the national level, when he reached the final round of both 1-cushion carom and 3-cushion carom. Photo: HOANG QUAN

Participating in the tournament with 31 athletes, competing in the 1-cushion and 3-cushion carom events, the strength of the Binh Dinh delegation is very modest compared to many other provinces and cities. However, with high determination, progress in professional level and competitive mentality, the players of Vo land have won 4 more places in the final round. This is the tournament where player Le Dinh Sy shines, when for the first time he won the right to enter the final round of the 1-cushion carom event. Not only that, he also excellently won third place overall and won 1 more place in the final round of the 3-cushion carom event.

The diligent play of an experienced engineer also helped Huynh Xuan Chau win a ticket to the final round of the 3-cushion carom event, completing a double this season (he was in the 1-cushion carom event last season). During their journey in this tournament, Xuan Chau and Dinh Sy had classic comebacks, when their opponents were far behind. Dinh Sy even surpassed the top player in the 1-cushion carom event. However, this fierce tournament also prevented the great hopes of Binh Dinh billiards such as Cao Thanh Truc (the reigning champion of the 1-cushion carom event at the National Sports Festival), Tran Ha Thanh, Le Dinh Dung... from entering the final round.

Besides the familiar players of Binh Dinh billiards, the highlight of this year's season is the appearance of the "strange bird" Nguyen Van Duong, when he successively surpassed many excellent players such as Tran Duc Minh (Da Nang, the reigning champion of the 3-cushion carom event of the National Sports Festival), Truong Quang Hao (Ho Chi Minh City) ... to win second place in the 3-cushion carom event. Nguyen Van Duong currently lives in Chau Doc City, An Giang Province, but his hometown is Binh Dinh, so this year he decided to join the team of athletes from the land of Vo. Nguyen Van Duong's intelligent, calm and gentle playing style always attracts the attention of many fans.

Binh Dinh billiards team coach Vo Dinh Hung said: “This year’s tournament has a record number of athletes, but through that it shows the maturity of many Binh Dinh players. I am very satisfied with what they have achieved, although I also feel a bit regretful for Thanh Truc and Ha Thanh because of their lack of luck. I am asking for the opinion of the leaders of the provincial Sports Training and Competition Center about increasing the team slot for Nguyen Van Duong to join Binh Dinh billiards. At that time, the team will be much stronger, able to compete for high positions in national tournaments; the players will have more internal competition to improve their professional level.”

Witnessing the impressive performance of the Binh Dinh players, a billiards enthusiast connected with a company to sponsor the competition outfits for the 4 athletes from the land of Vo in the final round. Although the sponsorship value is still modest, this is the first step in the journey of socialization, helping to increase the motivation for athletes in this sport.

HOANG QUAN

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