Vietnamese chess player makes a splash in the homeland of chess

In the Vietnamese sports delegation at the 19th ASIAD, chess is probably the team that receives the most attention from the host country's media, with two athletes, Nguyen Thanh Bao and Lai Ly Huynh, playing professional chess in China.

On October 1, the Vietnamese chess team lost to China 0-3 in the final match of the mixed team, temporarily satisfied with the silver medal at the 19th ASIAD. It was a difficult day of competition due to the strange scheduling of the Organizing Committee, when the Vietnamese team had just finished a mind-boggling battle of many hours with Macau and had to immediately enter the final match with the Chinese team, ranked number 1 in the world.

Media from many countries, including China, pay special attention to Vietnamese chess athletes.

LITTLE BAO

Athlete Nguyen Thanh Bao had a very intense and fierce confrontation with the host country's chess master Wang Yang. Despite his two teammates losing first, he did not accept the draw and tried to attack the Chinese master Wang Yang in a match that lasted until 23 hours. He regretted: "At the 2010 ASIAD in Guangzhou, I also won a silver medal, unfortunately, losing to the master Hong Tri in a 100% draw. This time, in the endgame, due to bad luck, I also lost. I know that whether we win or lose, the Vietnamese team will lose, but a victory will have great spiritual significance."

Athlete Lai Ly Huynh also shared: "The Chinese team played excellently and came up with extremely reasonable tactics. The most regrettable match was between Bao and Uong Duong, a very attractive double match. However, because there was not much time left, Bao made a few inaccurate moves and lost. This final match will leave us with many profound lessons and valuable experiences."

Chess player Thanh Bao

Although the content ended the latest, almost midnight, many of the host country's media still stuck to the "battlefield" to interview the Vietnamese chess players. It should also be added that the two athletes Nguyen Thanh Bao and Lai Ly Huynh are very famous in China. The leader of the Vietnamese chess team Nguyen Minh Thang revealed: "Lai Ly Huynh and Nguyen Thanh Bao practiced and competed for a whole year in China. Even Lai Ly Huynh is playing very impressively in the shirt of the top Chinese chess team Hang Chau".

Athlete Nguyen Thanh Bao said: "Chinese people highly respect Chinese chess. It can be said that this is the national sport of China, more popular than football. Vietnamese players have won gold medals from China many times. Lai Ly Huynh and I are familiar opponents in the Chinese professional tournament. Being invited to compete by the world's leading chess power is not simple."

Vietnam chess team

It is known that Lai Ly Huynh has played for Chinese professional chess teams since 2016. After a 3-year hiatus due to Covid-19, he and Nguyen Thanh Bao have returned and made special impressions. While senior Nguyen Thanh Bao plays for the Zhejiang 2 team, Lai Ly Huynh is a star in the Hangzhou team (the team leading the Chinese team championship). This is a tournament that brings together 12 leading chess clubs in this billion-people country, with a championship prize of up to 3 billion yuan (more than 10 billion VND). "The experience of fighting here will be passed on by Lai Ly Huynh and I to those who have not yet competed in the Chinese professional tournament. There will be an individual event at the 19th ASIAD, we will definitely fight for the gold medal to the end, trying our best to bring glory to the Fatherland".

Thanhnien.vn