Every day at around 4pm, Mr. Tran The Thai goes to the badminton court of Junko Elementary School and usually returns home after 9pm. For more than 7 years, he has been silently “passing on the passion” of badminton to the students.
“My friends and I play badminton in the afternoons to relax and improve our health in old age. Whenever we enter the field, children gather around to watch and cheer us on with great interest. But rural children do not have money to buy rackets or shuttlecocks, so they look at us with longing. We cannot help but feel sad when we see them,” Mr. Thai said.
Concerned with the passion of the children in his hometown, Mr. Thai spent his own money to buy some rackets and shuttlecocks for the children. That was the day the first “brick” was laid to form the Dien Phuoc Commune Badminton Club.
At first, there was no training ground, so they had to use the school's concrete yard for training. With the dedication and enthusiasm of this coach, the boys and girls stuck with badminton.
[VIDEO] - Mr. Tran The Thai talks about the badminton club he founded:
Along with maintaining training, the cost of buying training equipment is also something that must be considered, but it is impossible for the children to buy it themselves while most of their parents are farmers and do not have much money, so Mr. Thai uses his small salary to cover the expenses for the children. Clothes, shoes, rackets, training and competition expenses, etc., he takes care of everything himself.
And not only is he a teacher in sports training, but Mr. Tran The Thai's calmness and affection also help local teenagers learn to become good children and good students.
“He has always been dedicated to teaching us since the first day he picked up the racket. He never spoke harshly but always gently instructed us when we played incorrectly or did not meet the requirements of the exercises. Thanks to that, we always had joy and maintained our passion for badminton, and also learned from him the calmness and harmonious behavior.”
Nguyen Thi Thuy Nhung - Badminton Club of Dien Phuoc Commune
By devoting all his efforts to training and inspiring the children, from a locality where no student knew how to play badminton, after 7 years of establishment, the club founded by Mr. Tran The Thai has more than 90 children aged 6 to 18 practicing regularly.
Having created a widespread badminton movement in the locality, Mr. Tran The Thai aimed for a higher goal of "polishing" and training young athletes.
“This is a free playground so all children can participate. I recruit talented children from a very young age and separate them for separate training. From there, I apply professional training programs and set the goal of forming generations of athletes,” said Mr. Thai.
With 92 athletes participating in district and provincial level competitions, 89 athletes won medals of all kinds, including 29 gold medals, 30 silver medals and 30 bronze medals.
And most recently, this training "furnace" helped Quang Nam win 2 medals at the 2024 National Phu Dong Sports Festival.
[VIDEO] - A training session at Dien Phuoc Commune Badminton Club:
Works participating in the press contest "Spreading positive energy for Quang Nam's aspirations"
Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/nguoi-truyen-lua-mon-cau-long-o-dien-phuoc-3142589.html
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