Gymnastics team sets up fund outside regulations: With the consent of athletes' families

After verifying that the establishment of funds is not in the regulations of the National Gymnastics Team, the Department of Sports and Physical Training requested the coaching staff to terminate the existence and operation of all these funds. In addition, the coaches must have a meeting with all the parents of the athletes to agree on how to handle the funds that have been paid.

Funding is with the consent of athletes and their families.

In a report sent to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Department of Sports and Physical Training clarified that head coach Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy established two funds, called the "central fund" and the "domestic and foreign funds". The contributions of these two funds were publicly announced to athletes and their families, as well as coaches, and had the consent of all parties.

The verification team met with athletes, parents, and the coaching staff of the national gymnastics team to clarify the purpose of establishing this fund. On January 18, the athletes confirmed that their monthly salaries were transferred directly to the accounts of the athletes' parents and that the fund contributions were made by the parents.

The Department of Sports and Physical Training has verified the purpose of establishing a fund at the national gymnastics team.

On January 23, the verification team worked with 6 out of 8 families of athletes from the national women's gymnastics team. The remaining 2 families reside in Can Tho and were unable to participate.

All 6 parents confirmed that they received their monthly salary and food allowance through their bank accounts and contributed 2 amounts of money to the team fund for Coach Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy. These contributions were publicly announced and had the general consensus of the members.

Contributions to the fund were made from 2021 to 2023. However, parents do not remember the exact number of contributions.

Coach Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy confirmed that the fund establishment and the amount of contribution are based on the team's needs. In case the fund runs out or is necessary, the parents will be notified via the Zalo group. Ms. Thuy affirmed that the fund establishment is voluntary with the consensus of the coaches, athletes, and parents of the athletes and the revenue and expenditure are made public in the general contact group.

What is the purpose of the extra-regulatory fund?

Ms. Thuy further explained the name of the "central fund". This fund is not for submission to the Hanoi National Sports Training Center, but is a short name for parents to easily remember. The purpose of the fund is to pay for after-hours physical therapy, group activities, birthdays, team parties, and additional purchases for the common meeting room (printer, projector, refrigerator, massage bed, fan, hot and cold bath, warranty and maintenance of the team's ice machine).

The internal and external funds are spent on activities such as visiting funerals, supporting families in difficult circumstances, buying nutritious food for athletes participating in domestic and international tournaments and team gifts after the tournament.

Coach Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy and the coaching staff realized that the donation was not in accordance with regulations and caused negative reactions in public opinion. At the same time, they took responsibility and will learn from their mistakes. Coach Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy has been dismissed from her coaching position in the national women's gymnastics team.

In addition, the Department of Sports and Physical Training also clarified information that the national gymnastics team transferred money to a character named "Uncle T" (listed in the text message). This person was identified as Mr. Le Ngoc Tam, Deputy Head of Training Management, Hanoi National Sports Training Center.

According to the report, the money transfer was to ask Mr. Tam to buy painkillers for the team and the content of the message was to urge the athletes to return the money for the medicine to Mr. Tam. In addition, based on the minutes of the meeting with the Hanoi National Sports Training Center on January 18, 2024, the Board of Directors and Mr. Le Ngoc Tam - Department of Training Management and Political Affairs both affirmed that they did not collect any illegal fees.

However, the Department of Sports and Physical Training found that there were not enough conditions to verify the information.

Van Hai

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