The SEA Games

Wai Jia: The Kung Fu Forum Kung Fu Forum
1

The 24th SEA Games have started in Thailand. Here is the official website. The martial events include archery, boxing, fencing, judo, karatedo, muay thai, pencak silat, shooting, tae kwon do, wrestling and wushu. Kempo is being added as a demo sport this year.

SEA Games open in a blaze of colour
1 hour ago

KORAT, Thailand (AFP) — The 24th SEA Games officially opened here Thursday with hosts Thailand looking to give their king a special birthday gift by finishing atop the medals table.

Fireworks lit up the night sky as nearly 9,000 performers from northeastern Thailand took part in a colourful opening ceremony at the main stadium in Korat, His Majesty the King’s 80th Birthday Anniversary Stadium.

The ceremony kicked off with a tribute to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, just a day after the nation celebrated his 80th birthday, in front of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn.

Eleven nations are chasing a total of 475 gold medals in more than 40 sports at the 10-day biennial showpiece and the host nation has already established an early lead at the top of the medals table.

But the main sports at the Southeast Asian Games start Friday, with attention focused on the athletics competition and the swimming pool, where Olympic hopefuls will be looking to catch the eye ahead of next year’s Beijing Games.

The eight-team football competition also resumes Friday, with sides vying for semi-final spots and Thailand gunning for their eighth consecutive success in the competition.

Two years ago, then hosts the Philippines came out on top at the Games, with 113 golds to Thailand’s 87. Vietnam won 70 golds and Malaysia took 61.

But the Thais are aiming to increase their haul to 150 this time around and the Philippines have lowered their sights to a more modest 70-gold target.

Organisers announced last month they were removing six sports and a total of 10 events from the competition due to lack of entrants, despite the more than 7,000 athletes and officials confirmed to attend.

As well as the headline events such as football, athletics, swimming and badminton, athletes are competing in a range of lesser-known sports, including the martial arts karatedo and Muay Thai, and sepak takraw, which is similar to volleyball but played with a rattan ball using the feet and head.

Organisers will be looking for a clean Games. Earlier this year they said the event would have the “strictest ever” anti-doping procedures, with twice as many tests as at the Philippines tournament in 2005. The regional anti-doping organisation said it expected up to 10 percent of athletes to be screened.

And they will be hoping to avoid allegations of match-fixing. A Vietnamese court earlier this year jailed two former footballers for rigging a match against Myanmar at the 2005 Games in return for cash from a betting syndicate.

There was also squabbling at the 2005 SEA Games over the fairness of the officiating, with then Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and other officials expressing doubts after hosts the Philippines took a decisive lead in the medals race.

SEA Games participants are Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The Games close on December 15.

2

cool.

check out the full gamut of events

http://www.2007seagames.com/eng/Sports/Sports/tabid/194/Default.aspx

:smiley:

3

How did I miss that?

The wushu icon looks silly.

SEA wushu mascot

4

Is that supposed to be a flying squirrel/regular? Kinda fits. :stuck_out_tongue:

5

I’m all excited to see the Snooker and Go competition.

6

kempo mascot looks like a gda avatar. lol

7

106

they need two more medals says I…

From pencak silat to sanshou wushu, martial arts fans have large choice at SEA Games

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand (AP): Cheak Bun Hong has chosen his sport wisely. Despite only one year’s experience in the martial art of sanshou wushu, the Cambodian got as far as the quarterfinals at the Southeast Asian Games.

“I love this sport,” Hong said late Friday after losing 2-0 to Senduk Youne Victorio from Indonesia. “It is lucky I like it, because I didn’t have a choice. If I wanted to come to the SEA Games, it was my only chance.”

This year’s event has seven Asian martial arts, and only true aficionados could possibly claim knowledge of all.

What is kempo? And how does it differ to pencak silat? Who might win gold at wushu?

From martial arts imported from northern Asia to homegrown techniques, athletes here are competing for 106 gold medals.

The imported sports begin with wushu, an exhibition and full-contact sport derived from Chinese martial arts, with film star Jet Li its most famous practitioner.

Wushu is subdivided into taolu - which uses weapons - and sanshou, which does not. Taolu is similar to gymnastics, and competitors are known to spin up to 720 degrees in the air on a jump. Sanshou is more like close-contact boxing, often ending in bear hugs with athletes trying to kick and flip each other.

Taekwondo, from Korea, is a better known art and has Olympic pedigree. It is marked by powerful punches and complicated kicks that move in fast to do the most damage.

Judo, too, is a recognized sport among global audiences. It does not involves weapons, strikes or thrusts. Instead, the object is to throw an opponent to ground, subdue him with a grappling maneuver, or force submission by joint locking the elbow or by applying a choke-hold.

Karate-do, from Japan, includes the grappling of wushu and the strikes of taekwondo, with or without weapons.

Muay thai, literally “Thai boxing,” is the national sport of Thailand, and began with Siamese soldiers as far back as 2000 years ago. Unlike other Asian forms of kickboxing, the Thai version places a strong emphasis on kicking, and almost every part of the body can be used to attack an opponent, except for head-butting.

Pencak silat, is a combination of more than 800 schools of fighting throughout Indonesia. Every region in the archipelago has passed down its own version of the sport, with or without weapons.

And kempo - a demonstration sport here - is also a kicking and punching sport, but in full protective gear.

Despite his defeat, Hong’s spirits were still high.

“You can’t make money as an athlete in Cambodia,” Hong said. “I’m going to try to find work playing my clarinet.”

8

Silat, Karate & Archery

I’m not sure how Silat is played. Anyone?

SEA Games: Worst ever showing in silat

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s campaign in silat ended without a gold after world champion Rina Jordana Adnan was beaten in the Under-50kg final at the Sungnoen Municipality Hall in Korat on Wednesday.

The sole Malaysian in the fight for a gold medal in 12 silat olahraga finals contested on the final day of competition, was beaten 1-4 by Indonesian Pengky Simbar.

Malaysia, who brought 14 exponents to Korat targeting four gold medals, finished with a haul of one silver and six bronzes, their worst ever result in the biennial Games since the sport was introduced in 1987.

The only other time when they failed to win a gold medal was in the 1997 Jakarta Games, hauling back only five silver and seven bronze medals.

The bronze medallists in Korat were Faizal Abdullah, Ahmad Shahril Zailuddin, Wan Nurul Hidayu, Malini Mohd, Emy Lajip and Mastura Sapuan.

At the last Games in Manila, Malaysia took back three gold medals in silat.

SEA Games: Little glitter in karate

PETALING JAYA: Lim Lee Lee won the women’s kata individual gold medal at the Kebkanjana Hall in Korat on Wednesday, see off a challenge from archrival Nguyen Hoang Ngan to win 3-2 in the final.

It was the third SEA Games final meeting between the two. Lee Lee lost to Hoang Ngan in Hanoi in 2003 but turned the tables on the Vietnamese to win in Manila 2005.

It was a silver lining – her team-up with Thoe Ai Poh and Chin Fang Yang saw them being beaten 0-5 by two-time defending champions Vietnam in the team final.

Ku Jin Keat made it a memorable start for the national karate squad when he defended his men’s individual kata title as well.

The 32-year-old, who bagged the silver medal at the Doha Asiad last year, did not face much difficulty in defeating Noel Espinola 5-0 of the Philippines in the final.

But Jin Keat failed to make it a double celebration after the men’s team could only settle for the bronze.

SEA Games: Mixed tale in archery

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s men recurve archers defeated Indonesia at the Suranaree University of Technology in Korat to wrest the gold medal on Wednesday.

They defeated the Indonesians, led by singles bronze medallist Sulistyawan Rahmat, 213-211 in a 48-arrow shoot final played over four ends.

The Malaysian women’s team however failed to defend their title, while the men’s compound team had to settle for the bronze.

The women’s recurve team of S. Anabarasi, Irza Hanie Abu Samah and Noor Azira Taip were beaten 198-204 by Indonesia in the final, while the men’s compound team beat Singapore 217-212 in the playoff for the bronze.

With the success of the men’s recurve team, Malaysia ended their campaign in archery with a haul of 2-2-1. The other gold medal was won by the 21-year-old Chu Sian in the individual recurve event on Tuesday.

9

and some wushu

Click for pic

Sea Games/Wushu: Diana’s gold a perfect gift for mum

DIANA Bong won the last wushu gold yesterday - the nanquan discipline - and dedicated it to her mother, Mary Liu.
But Diana, who amassed a total of 28.12 points for the swordplay discipline, had to share the gold with Vietnam’s Vu Thuy Linh.

The discipline was held over three days and Diana scored 9.27 on the first day, 9.42 on the second and 9.43 yesterday.

As competition between the Vietnamese and Malaysian was so keen, the judges from China failed to pick an outright winner and awarded gold to both.

“Though I am disappointed to share this gold I am happy I had given my best, and I dedicate this win to my mother,” said Diana.
The 22-year-old from Sarawak is currently waiting for a placement with Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and has not seen her mum since Chinese New Year last February.

"Because of the training and my studies and also the travelling we have been doing, I have not had a chance to be with my mother.

“I hope to meet her when I get back and give her this gold medal.”

Compatriot Tai Cheau Xuen took the bronze with a score of 25.24.

Malaysian exponents won a total of two gold (to meet their target), two silver and one bronze from the wushu competition which ended yesterday.

Wushu fighters lead gold strike
14:33’ 11/12/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – The wushu team dominated the podiums with five gold medals yesterday at the 24th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand.

The flaming toe: Vietnamese wushu artist Nguyen Van Tuan (right) deals a high kick to Thai fighter Saengdaeng Teerapong in the men’s 65kg sanshou (combat) final in the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand yesterday. Tuan won the gold.
The flaming toe: Vietnamese wushu artist Nguyen Van Tuan (right) deals a high kick to Thai fighter Saengdaeng Teerapong in the men’s 65kg sanshou (combat) final in the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand yesterday. Tuan won the gold.
Vietnam grabbed seven other golds from fencing, weightlifting and gymnastics events.

Thailand out-distance all other rivals in the medal tally. They have grabbed 78 gold, 75 silver and 60 bronze medals. Vietnam are stable in second place with 41 golds, 22 silvers and 46 bronzes. Singapore are in third with 32 gold, 26 silver and 22 bronze medals.

Vu Thuy Linh opened the golden day with a wonderful performance in women’s nanquan, which is three events combined. The Vietnamese girl shared her position with Malaysian Bong Siong Lin Diana and the two took 28.12 points after the three events.

It was the first time Linh, 17, has participated in a SEA Games and she successfully followed the triumphs of her mother, former world champion Nguyen Phuong Lan, who is now the national team’s coach.

“I am very happy with the gold medal. It (the SEA Games) is an important tournament and I suffered from heavy pressure before performing,” said Linh.

"I have trained hard for years and I harvested this victory with help from my teammates, coaches and especially my mother.

"My mother is the most important person who guided me to victory. She first introduced me to the sport and has trained me since I was but an eight-year-old girl.

“As a professional athlete and coach, she told me all her experiences and always encouraged me. She is the origin of my success,” Linh said.

The world silver medallist Linh was the second Vietnamese athlete to grab a ticket to perform at the Beijing Olympics next August, where wushu will be a demonstration event.

“Beijing is my next target and I will try my best there.”

In wushu’s sanshou (combat) event, Nguyen Thi Bich defeated her rival Si Si Sein from Myanmar 2-0 to take a gold medal in the women’s 48kg category. Her teammate Nguyen Thuy Ngan won 2-1 over the host’s Sopa Malewan in the women’s 52kg pool.

The fourth gold went to Phan Anh Yen in the men’s 56kg class, who trounced Benje Rivera from the Philippines 2-0.

Nguyen Van Tuan completed the day for the wushu team with a gold in the men’s 65kg category. He met with no difficulties and beat Saengdaeng Teerapong of Thailand 2-1 in the final match.

The Vietnamese gymnasts raised their voices yesterday with five gold medals.

Nguyen Minh Tuan won in the men’s rings event. Tuan had the most points with 15,150, much higher than the two runners-up. Thailand’s Sukdee Thitipong was second with only 14,700 points, while Ooi Wei Siang of Malaysia ranked third with 14,550 points.

Phan Thi Ha Thanh also took a gold in the women’s vault event.

Thanh’s teammate Do Thi Ngan Thuong, who shocked audiences with her previous competitions in women’s all-around and floor, continued her poor performance in this event. She received only 13,175 points, ranking fifth.

But she came back with a victory in women’s beam, earning 14,975 points to take home a gold medal.

Nguyen Ha Thanh and Pham Phuoc Hung made it a perfect day for the gymnastics team with two golds in men’s parallel bars and horizontal bar respectively.

Vietnam’s next gold medal was from Nguyen Thi Thiet in the women’s 63kg category. Thiet’s total weight in both snatch and jerk and clean was 220kg while her Thai rival Thongsuk Suree lifted only 206kg.

It was the first gold of the weightlifting team, who disappointed fans after hopeful Hoang Anh Tuan, who is the Asian champion, failed to clinch a gold medal in the men’s 56kg class.

Vietnam’s last gold yesterday was from the women’s sabre team.

10

Malaysia Star Wushu Reports

SEA Games: More wushu goodness

PETALING JAYA: Debutant Diana Bong Siong Lin won the women’s nanquan (southern style boxing) all-round competition in wushu at Chanapolkhan Institute of Technology in Korat on Monday.

Diana came good in the final nandao (sword) routine and was awarded 9.43 to take her total to 28.12.

She tied with Vietnamese Vu Thuy Linh, and they were declared joint winners.

The Vietnamese, who was on par with another Malaysian, Tai Cheau Xuen, after the nanquan and nangun (stick) routines, was given 9.42 for her performance in nandao.

Cheau Xuen only managed 9.35 on Monday and had to settle for the bronze on 28.05.

Malaysia won two golds, two silvers and a bronze in wushu at the SEA Games.

Fong Ying the first Malaysian woman to win gold in wushu

DEBUTANT Chai Fong Ying strut her way into the history books as the first Malaysian female wushu exponent to win a gold medal in the SEA Games at the Chanapolkhan Institute of Technology in Korat yesterday.

Fong Ying was confirmed as the winner of the taijiquan and taijijian all-round competition after dishing out a graceful performance in the taijijian (swordplay) to earn 9.55 points, taking her total to 19.18.

Another Malaysian, Ng Shin Yii, claimed the silver. Shin Yii scored 9.53 for a total of 19.09. Filipino Janice Hung took the bronze on 18.77.

The success for Fong Ying yesterday makes her the only Malaysian wushu exponent to hold the Asian Games, World Championships and SEA Games titles at the same time.

While Fong Ying made it look effortless, everything she has achieved came through personal sacrifices.

“I have taken two semesters off studies because of my preparations since the Asian Games last year,” said the 21-year-old Universiti Putra Malaysia student.

“My colleagues in the same batch have finished their studies but I guess this is what I love doing and good at it.”

National coach Yoong Thong Foong said they were looking forward to a bonus gold medal today.

The best bet is on the women’s nanquan all-round competition, which ends with the nangun (stick) routine.

Tai Cheau Xuen is the joint leader with Vu Thuy Linh of Vietnam after the completion of two routines with a total of 18.70.

Cheau Xuen scored 9.39 for the nandao (broadsword) yesterday while the Vietnamese exponent fared better with a 9.43.

Diana Bong is also in the running for the gold medal. She is just 0.1 point behind the joint leaders. Diana posted 9.42 in nandao to take her total to 18.69.

Same pic of Diana Bong below - love that hairstyle!! It’s much better than the dragonballz cut that some many male wushu athletes front.

Diana bags gold to make up for Manila disappointment

IT was the moment of glory that Diana Bong Siong Lin was waiting for and she was not about to let it slip from her hands.

In her debut in the SEA Games, Diana delivered a bonus gold medal for Malaysia, winning the women’s nanquan (southern style boxing) all-round competition at the Chanapolkhan Institute of Technology in Korat yesterday.

Diana came good in the final nandao (sword) routine and was awarded 9.43 points to take her total to 28.12. She tied with Vietnamese Vu Thuy Linh and they were declared as joint winners.

The Vietnamese, who was the leader with Malaysia’s Tai Cheau Xuen after the nanquan and nangun (stick) routines, was given 9.42 for her performance in nandao.

Cheau Xuen only managed 9.35 yesterday and settled for the bronze on 28.05.

For Diana, the success made up for the disappointment of the last Games in Manila where she was taken out of the squad a week before they left for Manila.

“I tore two ligaments and could not recover in time. I underwent surgery and it took me almost a year off competition.

“For the Manila Games, I believed that I had a chance to be a gold medallist because the disciplines were separated,” said the 22-year-old Sarawakian.

“This time they were combined as one and winning it is so much better. I did not do well on the first day but I tried not to worry about it too much.”

Diana, who won a bronze in the same combined event in the Doha Asian Games last year, produced a sparkling performance on the final day of the competition to cap a fine outing for Malaysia after the disappointment in Manila.

Then, Malaysia managed to win two silver and three bronze medals. This time, Malaysia will return home with a haul of 2-2-1.

The other gold medallist in Korat was Asian Games and World Championships gold medallist Chai Fong Ying in the women’s taijiquan and taijijian all-round event.

In the men’s changquan (northern style boxing) all-round yesterday, Malaysia’s Ang Eng Chong finished fifth on 28.31. Aung Si Thu of Myanmar took the gold on 28.65.

Pui Fook Chien missed out on a bronze, finishing fourth on 28.18 in the men’s nanquan all-round competition won by World Championships gold medallist Willy Wang of the Philippines, who had a total of 28.60.

11

boxing protest

The Thai boxers will be the ones to watch in Beijing…

Filipino fighters forfeit gold medal bouts in SEA Games protest

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand (AP): Filipino boxers forfeited six gold medal bouts at the Southeast Asian Games on Thursday in a protest against judging, and threatened not to compete in future editions of the event.

The forfeits in the men’s finals came after judges for the women’s finals on Wednesday awarded wins to host Thailand in all five bouts against Filipino opponents that were decided on points.

"We just wanted to send a message that some things have to be changed,‘’ said Manny Lopez, president of the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines. "Our boys lost their courage and their energy to fight after our country was dishonored in the women’s finals. Our boys were commiserating with their women teammates.

You shouldn’t do that to women especially. The officiating was very biased, and my opinion will be concurred by all the other countries.‘’

Monico Puentevella, the head of the Philippines team at these SEA Games, said team officials met Wednesday night to decide how to protest the judging, and that it was left up to each individual boxer whether to forfeit.

"It’s their call, but whatever their decision may be, we will fully support them,‘’ Puentevella said in a statement released to media. "We understand their situation, sympathize with them and believe they will do whatever is right.‘’

The vocal Thai crowd was puzzled when Godfrey Castro in the flyweight final threw up his hands at the opening bell and forfeited. When Junel Catancio did the same in the bantamweight final in the next scheduled bout, the crowd began to boo and abuse the visiting fighters.

Thereafter, the Filipinos chose to fight for short stints before retiring. Junie Tizon in the middleweight final and Maximino Tabangcora in the light heavyweight final both retired at the end of the first of four scheduled rounds. Orlando Tacuyan Jr. retired at the end of the second in the featherweights, and in the lightweight final Joegin Ladon quit during the first round.

Larry Semillano in the super lightweight final was the only Filipino fighter to contest his full bout, losing on points to 2004 Olympic gold medalist Manus Boonjumnong.

The judges at the Southeast Asian Games were from neutral countries, but Lopez said they could be influenced.

"Who invites these so-called neutral judges? The hosts. Who pays their airfare? The hosts. Who pays for their accommodation? The hosts,‘’ Lopez said. Thursday’s forfeits further sullied the reputation of the Southeast Asian Games, where medal tallies heavily favor host nations, and threatened the future of boxing at the event.

"It’s bad at the Southeast Asian level,‘’ Lopez said . "The way things are going, I am willing not to present my boys in the Southeast Asian Games anymore. We can meet Thailand in other events which are more reliable, like the Asian Games.

"We will do a lot of hard thinking about what will happen in the future.‘’ Unlike professional boxing where judges make qualitative decisions on which fighter won each round, amateur boxing is judged by computerized scoring of clear legal blows landed.

Each of the five judges has a red and a blue button which they press accordingly for each clear scoring blow they see. Three out of the five judges must press the button for the same boxer within one second in order for the point to be awarded.

The Filipino boxers were underdogs in all of Thursday’s bouts, with their strong Thai opponents including Boonjumong, 2007 world championship silver medalist Non Boonjumnong, 2004 Olympic silver medalist Petchkoom Worapoj and 2004 Olympic bronze medalist Suriya Prasathinphimai.

12

some more karate

there’s a pic, but it’s mediocre

Karate exponents meet four-gold target after first day’s action

KUMITE exponents R. Puvaneswaran and Lim Yoke Wai ensured that the Malaysian karate squad met the four-gold target set for them on just the opening day of the three-day competition at the Kebkanjana Hall in Korat yesterday.

Following the two opening victories in the kata individual events in the morning, it was the two Doha Asiad silver medallists’ turn to fight their way to the gold in the below 55kg and 65kg categories respectively.

The 33-year-old Puvaneswaran bade farewell to the SEA Games with a 6-2 victory over Vietnam’s Pham Hoai Long.

It was Hoai Long who made the stronger start, taking a 2-0 lead before the Malaysian veteran found his composure to outclass his opponent.

“Although I trailed 0-2, I did not panic and chose to bide my time. I won the bout purely on tactics and not skills,” said Puvaneswaran.

The Malaysian exponent, who has now won the SEA Games below 55kg gold medal four times (1999, 2001, 2005 and 2007), announced that he would now only take part in selected high-ranking tournaments, especially those on the European circuit.

Yoke Wai, who won two silvers and a bronze in three previous Games, finally landed the gold. The 26-year-old turned the tables on World Championships bronze medallist Donny Dharmawan of Indonesia in sudden death.

“When Donny forced the bout to go into sudden death on 2-2 in the last few seconds of normal time, I became upset. I was tired of always losing to him in the below 65kg competitions,” said Yoke Wai.

“It is always a 50-50 chance in sudden death and I took a huge risk by going on the offensive. I managed to land a punch on his face, and it ended my six-year wait for a SEA Games gold.”

Another Asian Championships gold medallist, A.Vasantha Marial, failed to live up to her top billing in the women’s below 48kg event.

Vasantha, who was down with flu upon arrival in Korat, was clearly not at her best and went down 0-1 to Vietnam’s Vu Thi Nguyen Anh in the semi-finals.

However, she picked herself up and won her next fight in the repechage to clinch a bronze.

G. Vathana also delivered a bronze in the women’s below 53kg event.

She missed out on a first SEA Games final appearance after going down 2-3 to Vietnam’s Dao Thi Tu Anh in the semi-finals.

With another 10 gold medals in kumite still to be contested today and tomorrow, the national karate exponents are on course to better their best haul of 7-5-4 achieved outside Malaysia during the 1999 Brunei Games.

13

I posted this one for the pic

there’s nice tkd pic with the article

Vietnam capture more 12 golds, remain second
Riedl resigns as Vietnamese football head coach

Vietnam’s Nguyen Van Hung (L) fights Philippines’ Alejandrino Michael in the men’s heavy weight over 84kg taekwondo at the at the SEA Games in Nakhon Ratchasima yesterday
By VU DUC

Hosts Thailand still consolidate the first place with 119 golds, 102 silvers and 83 bronzes. While Malaysia came third after taking 44 golds, 37 silvers and 72 bronzes. Singapore and Indonesia have 38 golds each.

Tran Van Toan opened a successful day for the Vietnamese sport delegation with a gold in the pencak silat event. Toan defeated M. Andi Supiantoro from Indonesia in the final game of the men’s under 55kg category.

Le Thi Hong Ngoan and Huynh Thi Thu Hong bagged up two more golds for Vietnam’s pencak silat team in the women’s over 65kg and under 55kg categories respectively. Nguyen Thanh Quyen brought home the fourth gold in the men’s over 80kg category.

Though competing in nine final games, however, the pencak silat athletes just gained four victories. The silver medalists were Dinh Cong Son in the men’s under 75kg, Le Ngoc Tan in the men’s under 65 kg, Nguyen Duy Chien in the men’s under 70kg, Vu The Hoang in the men’s under 80kg and Nguyen Thi Phuong Thuy in the women’s under 65kg categories.

SEA Games taekwondo champion Nguyen Trong Cuong clinched a gold medal in the men’s under 84kg category before his older brother Nguyen Van Hung became the champion of the men’s over 84kg category.

In karate event, Nguyen Hoang Ngan, Vu Thi Hong Thu and Nguyen Thi Thu Hien grasped the gold in the team women’s kata and Vu Thi Nguyet Anh won the gold in the women’s under 48kg category.

However, world champion Nguyen Hoang Ngan failed to secure the gold in the individual women’s kata and men’s kata team just took home the silver. The two more silvers went to Dao Thi Tu Anh in the women’s under 53kg and Pham Hoai Long in the men’s under 55kg category.

Nguyen Thi Kieu grabbed the second gold medal for the judo team in the women’s 57-kilogram category and Tran Thi Bich Tram also took the gold in the women’s 52kg category.

In the canoe flat, Luu Van Hoan and Tran Van Long finished first in the C2 1,000 meter men event. Vietnamese rowers also took the silver in the K2 1,000 meter men event.

Meanwhile, Chi Ba, Thanh Tuan and Tien Cuong shared one gold in the compound bow men’s archery team event.

The women’s sepaktakraw team failed to take a gold medal in the women’s sepaktakraw final of the regu event after losing to archrivals Thailand 2-0.

The Austrian accepted to resign at VFF’s request after the poor performance of the national football team at the on-going SEA Games in Thailand.

Riedl signed his resignation, which the VFF had prepared yesterday morning, though he was determined not to give up his post a day earlier. VFF will have to pay Riedl US$30,000 in compensation because his employment contract lasts until next April.

Riedl also faced harsh criticisms on the local media and the overenthusiastic fans as well as VFF’s members when his squad failed to reach the finals of the Games’ men football event.

Mai Duc Chung, serving as assistant to the head coach, will temporarily replace Rield until VFF finds a replacement.

Riedl, 48, has spent ten years in Vietnam serving as head coach, however, he failed to gain any championship at the SEA Games as well as regional competition.

Riedl just helped the national squad winning the silver medal at the Tiger Cup 1998, the bronze at the Dunhill Cup 1999, silver medals at SEA Games 1999 and 2003. He also led the team to the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup 2007 and the third qualifying round for the 2008 Olympics.

In 2004, Brazilian coach Tavares was sacked after his team defeated 0-3 at home by Indonesia at the Tiger Cup 2004.

Alfred Riedl
The national football squad showed poor performance at the SEA Games as they lost 2-3 to Singapore in the qualifying round, before knocked out by Myanmar in the semifinals with the score of 3-1 in the penalty shootout.

Vietnam will fight again Singapore for bronze medal on Friday.

14

In regards to the Philipinos protests, politics and sports go hand in hand nowadays, best why to keep the judge factor out is to KO your opponent.

15

SEA 2007 is over

The SEA Games sounds like a lot of fun - some really interesting events.

2009 SEA Games to reduce number of Olympic sports
By CHRIS LINES The Associated Press
Published: December 16, 2007

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand: The next Southeast Asian Games will reduce the number of Olympic sports.

Cycling, basketball, gymnastics, hockey, rowing and weightlifting are among Olympic sports at the current SEA Games that will be absent in Vientiane, Laos in December 2009.

The games will retain events like tenpin bowling, petanque, billiards, ‘dragon’ boat racing, sepak takraw, the more obscure martial arts of wushu, Muay Thai and pencak silat, and will resume the sport of juggling a shuttle**** with feet.

There will be 25 disciplines compared to 43 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

The cutback is partly due to the landlocked country - with no sailing, windsurfing or triathlon - and also lack of facilities in Vientiane.

Organizers also wanted to reduce the breadth of the games, with many events currently having small fields and weak competition.

Thailand swept the final day of medals, winning gold in men’s, women’s and mixed doubles tennis on Saturday. In beach volleyball, Indonesia defeated Thailand in straight sets to take men’s gold while Yupa Phokongploy and Kulna Kamoltip edged another Thai pair in the deciding third set to take the women’s event.

Thailand topped the table with 183 gold medals, with the games’ closing ceremony on Saturday.

It was the fourth straight SEA Games where the host nation had finished top of the standings.

Debate about home advantage reached boiling point here in boxing, where the Philippines forfeited six men’s gold medal bouts in a protest at judging in the women’s finals - where its boxers lost out to Thai opponents in all five bouts that were decided on points.

The Philippines’ protest spared its fighters having to compete with a world-class array of Thai boxers. The Philippines was considered to benefit from the judging at the Manila event in 2005.

The protest robbed the Games of a rare display of world-competitive athletes in gold medal competition. Manus Boonjamnong and his brother Non, Amnat Ruenroeng, Somjit Jongjohor, Pichai Sayota and Suriya Prasathinphimai will all be genuine threats for the Philippines at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Aside from boxing, the only other Olympic gold prospects on display were in shooting and badminton.

Shooting was held before the Games started to avoid a clash with an Asian championship.

In badminton, Indonesia swept all seven gold medals, led by reigning Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat in men’s singles. However Indonesia was not put fully to the test as Malaysia’s top male and female players sat out the Games - and both nations will be hard pressed to match the powerhouse of China in Beijing.

The most popular win was that of the Thai men’s under-23 soccer team. Thailand won an eighth straight SEA Games gold by defeating Myanmar 2-0 in the final Friday before a sell-out crowd. However, Thailand had already failed to qualify for Beijing.

On the track, Indonesia’s Suryo Agung Wibowo won the 100 and 200 meters double for men, as did Vietnam’s Vu Thi Huong for women. Similarly, the 5,000 and 10,000 meters double was won by Thailand’s Boonthung Srisung for men and Indonesia’s Triyaningsih in the women’s. Vietnam monopolized the 800 and 1,500 meter events, with Nguyen Dinh Cuong doing the men’s double and Hang Truong Thanh the women’s.

Thailand’s Beijing-bound Wassana Winatho not only won the heptathlon but also the women’s 400 meters hurdle, and took gold in the 4x400 meter relay.

In the pool, Thailand’s Natthanan Jankrajang won four golds in women’s events, as did Singapore’s Chinese-born Tao Li.

FINAL MEDAL STANDINGS AT THE 2007 SOUTHEAST ASIAN GAMES

Thailand 183 123 103 409

Malaysia 68 52 96 216

Vietnam 64 58 82 204

Indonesia 56 64 83 203

Singapore 43 43 41 127

Philippines 41 91 96 228

Myanmar 14 26 47 87

Laos 5 7 32 44

Cambodia 2 5 11 18

Brunei Darrusalam 1 1 4 6

16

Laos this year

The prez is all place in the top three. we got no money for you, but do it…:rolleyes:

SBY wants a top-three spot for Indonesia at SEA Games
Erwida Maulia & Agnes Winarti , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Thu, 03/19/2009 3:03 PM | Sports

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked the National Sports Council (KONI) to lead Indonesia to a top-three finish at this year’s Southeast Asian (SEA) Games XXV, to be held in Laos.

The president pledged full funding to help the athletes prepare, adding he would immediately discuss the issue after the legislative elections.

“Let’s target a top-three finish. That is no illusion; that’s a real target. And you have to have a strong will, undergo training and prepare good logistics to meet the expectations,” the President said Wednesday as he officiated KONI’s two-day national meeting at the Presidential Palace.

The President, chief patron of the Democratic Party, said he did not want to commence the talks before the elections, over concerns the move could be construed as “something else”.

Indonesia used to be the dominant force in the Southeast Asian multisport showcase, until 1997 when it hosted the biennial event.

At the last SEA Games in Thailand in 2007, attended by 10 Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia finished a lowly fourth, trailing winners Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam.

Yudhoyono said the government had continuously increased the budget allocation for sports each year.

With the global economic crisis expected to slash Indonesia’s tax revenues, the President expressed hope the private sector would help develop the country’s sports through corporate social responsibility programs.

“It looks like I have to descend the mountain to call for someone to help,” he said, adding he enjoyed watching sports and wanted the public to enjoy them too. “We want the public to appreciate sports because they provide good life lessons.”

He added sports could teach people about sportsmanship, an attitude that should also be exhibited by candidates in elections.

The President told KONI to build up the country’s sports structure based on long-term visions, and to aim for achievements at the global level.

The KONI meeting, which kicked off Tuesday, was attended by hundreds of participants representing KONI’s 33 provincial branches and 49 sports federations.

The Laos SEA Games, which will take place in December, is among the list of events Indonesia will participate in this year. The others include the 5th Paralympics Games, also in Laos (December), the 3rd Asian Indoor Games in Vietnam (November), the 2nd Islamic Solidarity Games in Iran (October), the 1st Asian Youth Games in Singapore (June) and the 1st Asian Martial Arts Games in Thailand (April).

KONI chairwoman Rita Subowo said the council would receive an allocation of Rp 120 billion from the government for a national training camp.

“We expect to receive the funds soon,” Rita said after the meeting.

“The President is aware that to achieve in sports, good funding is needed. After the elections in April, we will be summoned to further discus about funding.”

KONI will participate in 22 sports from 26 on offer in Laos, while for the 1st Asian Martial Arts Games, which will be held in Bangkok from April 25 to May 3, KONI will join fights in five of nine sports, including karate, wushu, taekwondo, judo and pencak silat.

17

I suppose I could have put this in any of the games threads…

But the SEA Games are mentioned the most prominently…

Last Updated: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 12:27:32 Vietnam (GMT+07)
Passion fuels wushu warrior

A young martial arts star and daughter of a wushu champion says it was sweat and tears that got her where she is today, not nepotism.

Vu Thuy Linh admits that she might have become a singer or a teacher had she not followed her mother’s footsteps into a life as a wushu martial arts master.

The 19-year-old says having her mother as a trainer was an advantage, but that she still had to endure pain and hardship to win international recognition as one of Southeast Asia’s best fighters.

However, some have said that Linh’s success is not only due to her mother’s training, but also her status as a government official.

“I don’t think I’ve gotten where I am because of my mother’s power,” Linh says. “I know my strengths and weaknesses.”

And indeed, she showed the strengths when she won the gold medal at the 2007 SEA Games wushu competition by defeating some of the sport’s best athletes.

Learning the art

Linh’s mother took her to her first wushu class when she was just five years old.

“I practiced it for a few days and was interested, but it was too tiring and I wanted to sing, not fight.”

Linh then began studying singing.

“After two years of song classes, I told Mom I was ready to try wushu again. But she said I would have to try my best and there would be no giving up this time.”

Linh quickly developed advanced nanquan skills, which were her mother’s specialty. But it took extra practice for her to master the more difficult changquan style.

She had to lift weights to gain the necessary strength for changquan, which she says she regrets a bit because she feels the lifting stunted her growth. Though she says she’s too short and fat, its hard not to describe the 1.63-meter Linh as both tall and attractive.

Detour

In 2005, Linh injured her knee and had to stop practicing while she received treatment in China. It was a huge setback as she ended up missing several major international events that year while she recovered.

Linh says she became very pessimistic but that encouraging words and care from her parents, trainers and friends helped her regain her confidence.

As she nursed her injury for six months, she decided to help teach junior wushu classes for children.

“I was just like them when I was a child. I felt very happy to be able to help out,” she said.

Rise

After months of watching from the sidelines as her friends practiced, Linh began to feel a burning desire to train again.

She began practicing in May 2007, before she had fully recovered. She had her sights set on the 24th Southeast Asian Games in December that year.

Linh felt a lot of pressure to perform after years out of the game and says she tried to practice 10 times harder than her teammates.

“At times it was very painful and I couldn’t walk after some practices. My teammates had to help me and I often cried.”

But the effort paid off when she won the gold medal at the SEA Games.

She says her strength is her confidence. She says she forgets about all the worries of life when she competes and only feels truly free wile performing.

“But this is also a weakness,” Linh says. “When I get too excited, I sometimes forget the difficult movements and make mistakes.”

For the future

Now, Linh and her teammates are training for several events at the end of the year: the Asian Wushu Championships, the World Wushu Championships and the 25th SEA Games in Laos.

She’s also an assistant trainer for the 14-15 year-old national squad.

The young warrior is also learning Chinese in preparation to take the entrance exam to the Beijing University for Physical Training and Sports, where some of the world’s best wushu artists have trained.

Reported by Hong Minh

VU THUY LINH
Born: 1990 in Hanoi
Nickname: “Linh Beo” (Fatty Linh)
Won a bronze medal at the national junior wushu competiton at the age of nine; won three golds at the Asian Youth Wushu competitions in 2003, 2005, and 2007
Once won first prize at a singing competition in Hanoi

18

Are the SEA Games more important to wushu than the WWG?

I should start a 10WWG thread here… eh…maybe later…:rolleyes:

June 24, 2009 19:41 PM
World Championship To Be Last Tango For Wushu Exponents Before Sea Games

KUALA LUMPUR, June 24 (Bernama) – The 10th World Wushu Championship in Canada this October is expected to be the final platform for national wushu exponents to boost their skills and confidence before the SEA Games in Vientiane, Laos in December.

Wushu Federation of Malaysia (WFM) executive secretary Winnie Chin Kim Yoong told Bernama that the World Championship to be held from Oct 24-29 in Toronto will be the last major event before the SEA Games from Dec 9-18.

“We expect national exponents who compete in the championship to gain very good exposure to boost their confidence before heading to Laos. This is also an acid test for them,” said Chin.

Among the exponents who have been identified for the World Wushu Championship are Lim Yew Fai, Pui Fook Chien, Ang Eng Chong, Lee Yang, Wee Jung Jieh (Taolu) and Ng Say Yoke, Wong Her Jien, Ding Siew Bee for (Sanshou).

At the last World Wushu Championship in Beijing, two years ago, more than 1,000 wushu exponents from 89 countries took part and a similar participation was expected in Canada, she said.

Chin said the national exponents were currently undergoing intensive training at the National Sports Complex in Bukit Jalil under head coach Yoong Tong Foong as preparations for the international and regional championships.

The SEA Games offers a total of 383 gold medals in the 25 sports contested, from which 21 gold medals are allocated for Wushu competitions.

Malaysia won two gold medals at the 2007 Korat SEA Games in Thailand through the women’s Nanquan and Taijiquan.

Chin however, said the federation has yet to set any targets for SEA Games but was confident the national exponents would be able to win several gold medals.

– BERNAMA

19

The SEA games are on

I omitted all but the martial artists in the first article…

Indonesian Athletes to Watch at the SEA Games

Here are some of Indonesia’s strongest medal hopefuls at the Southeast Asian Games.

…

Wushu: Lindswell, 19

Two years ago in Thailand, Lindswell was just another wushu athlete, and she was ousted in the first round of the taijiquan event.

What a difference a couple of years make. At the 2009 SEA Games, Lindswell is the one to beat as she comes into Laos with two world titles.

The North Sumatra native won the World Junior Wushu Championship in Bali last December. And in October of this year, she took the taijiquan title at the Wushu World Championship in Toronto, Canada.

Lindswell said that she’s optimistic about her gold medal chances in Laos, but pointed to Ma laysian Ng Shin Yi, who finished fourth in Canada, as the biggest threat .

…

Judo: Kresna Bayu, 34

Kresna Bayu is one of the most experienced athletes on the Indonesian team, having spent the last 20 years with the national judo squad, and he’s still the best in the 100-kg division.

The Laos Games will be Kresna’s seventh SEA Games, and he has collected four gold medals so far. The last of these golds came in 2001. He earned silver in Thailand in 2007.

Kresna has said that the Laos Games will be his last before retiring from the sport, and that he wants to end his long career with a gold.

He’s been training hard for that gold, and a victory at August’s Asian Martial Arts Games in Thailand proved that for Kresna, age is, indeed, only a number.

Saturday, December 12, 2009 12:51 AM
Wushu, karate hope to improve; boxers look to break dry spell
Agnes Winarti , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 12/04/2009 2:20 PM | Sports

The Indonesian wushu and karate teams aim to improve their gold medal tally from the last Southeast Asian Games while the boxers look to end a gold drought in Laos.

After managing to steal the show at the World Wushu Championships in Canada in October, Wushu Indonesia is confident its female wushu athletes will be able to maintain their form and improve the country’s gold medal collection at the next SEA Games in Laos.

“Our two gold medal hopes rest with our female taolu athletes, Lindswell and Susyana Tjhan,” team manager Ngatino said Wednesday.

Indonesia picked up one gold medal at the SEA Games in Thailand two years ago courtesy of men’s taijiquan specialist Freddy, but the squad could only add a silver and four bronze to the tally.

This year the 18-strong team is heading to Laos with more confidence after their Toronto trip where 18-year-old Lindswell earned them a gold medal in the women’s taijiquan event.

Women’s changquan specialist Susyana, who won bronze in Thailand, finished third in Toronto.

Meanwhile, the karate team is looking to increase their gold count from two in Thailand to three.

The 17 karatekas have undergone six weeks of intensive training under the supervision of Japanese coach Yasuhisa Inada.

“The fighters have improved their speed, variations, tactics and spirit,” team manager Djafar Djantang said.

Gold is expected in the men’s 84- and 60-kilogram divisions, the women’s kata team and the men’s and women’s kumite teams.

A total of 19 karate gold medals are on offer at the Games.

The nine-member boxing team are looking to end the gold drought in the last two SEA Games by targeting three gold medals.

Indonesian boxers could only bring home a bronze in Thailand and a silver in the Philippines.

Indonesia last won gold in 2003 in Vietnam, through Benny Elopere.

According to team manager Syamsul Anwar, men’s light heavyweight Ahmad Amrin, women’s light bantamweight Yunike Abigael Busira, and women’s bantamweight Welmy Pariama would be their medal prospects.

20

ttt 4 2013

I lost track of the SEA Games, but someone forwarded me this as more ‘evidence’ in lieu of the WWC lawsuit. Evidence. Oh yeah. :rolleyes:

09 December 2013| last updated at 12:08AM
WUSHU: Mun Hua loses gold to bias judging

ONLY a month ago, Ho Mun Hua was crowned champion in men’s nanquan at the World Championships in Kuala Lumpur but questionable judging robbed him a gold medal in the Sea Games in Naypyidaw yesterday.

Mun Hua was flawless in his routines but the judges only awarded him a 9.68 total, losing the gold medal by 0.02 points to Myanmar’s Aung Wai Phyo in nanquan. Compatriot Kyaw Soe took third on 9.67.

National coach Yoong Thong Fong lambasted the officials for being unfair but Mun Hua did not want to make it an issue.

“Somehow I knew this thing (questionable judging) would happen. Mun Hua was far better than his rivals today (yesterday) but finished only second best,” said Thong Fong at Wunna Theitdi Indoor Stadium yesterday.

“Bias judging is not uncommon in this sport. I’ve been to six Sea Games and most have been marred by unfair judging. We need things to improve.”

However, Thong Fong is confident Mun Hua will return strongly in the nandao (today) and nangun (tomorrow). Mun Hua, who won his first nanquan world title in 2009 in Toronto, also picked up a silver in duilian with Wong Weng Son and Lee Yang, who combined for a 9.48 total.

Myanmar’s Kyaw Htet Han-Aung Sein Thiha took gold with 9.65 while Singapore’s Lee Tze Yuan-Yong Yi Xiang were third on 9.47.

As for Mun Hua, it was still an eventful day despite being robbed the gold after failing to win medals in two previous appearances.

The Malacca-born made his debut in the 2007 Korat edition and competed two years later in Laos but did not feature in the 2011 Indonesia edition due to injury.

“I am delighted and have no complains. I am happy with my performance and credit to the Myanmar exponent for winning the gold. My coach congratulated me and that meant a lot,” said Mun Hua.

Mun Hua hopes his win in last month’s world meet will inspire him in nandao today.


Wushu exponent Ho Mun Hua with his two silver medals yesterday. Bernama pic