Basketball - an attractive but unpopular sport

A match at the 4th Hai Duong Province Basketball Club Tournament was just held.

No need to invest much

Basketball has been taught in Hai Duong for about 5 years now. Before that, this sport operated spontaneously in some localities with good facilities such as Hai Duong City, Chi Linh... Up to now, Hai Duong has organized an annual basketball tournament, attracting many clubs to participate.

In early July 2023, the 4th Hai Duong Provincial Basketball Club Tournament 2023 was held at the Provincial Sports Gymnasium. 9 teams from 6 clubs, including 3 women's clubs, competed, with a total of over 130 athletes. The athletes were mainly junior high and high school students in the province and students with registered residence in Hai Duong.

According to the leader of Hai Duong Sports Gymnasium, the basketball matches in the recent tournament as well as the annual tournaments had very few spectators. In the stands, there were only students from schools with clubs competing. This shows that in Hai Duong, basketball has not attracted audiences like football, table tennis... Therefore, basketball has not been widely developed, although to play this sport, the investment level of each athlete is not much.

Coach Nguyen Thi Hong Hanh of Hai Duong Sports Gymnasium said that to learn basketball, each student only needs 1 pair of shoes, 1 ball, and only need to buy clothes for competition. Although the investment is not much, this sport brings great benefits. "Basketball helps players improve their health, physique, body flexibility, height development, strength, endurance, dexterity, agility... Although in recent years, the number of students, especially during the summer, coming to practice has increased, for basketball to develop further or have a professional team, it will require a larger investment," said Ms. Hanh.

Basketball is being learned by many people at Hai Duong Sports Gymnasium.

Potential

Having trained and coached basketball athletes at Hai Duong Sports Gymnasium for many years, coach Nguyen Huy Hoa commented that Hai Duong people have great talent in many sports, including basketball.

Through the training process, Mr. Hoa believes that some athletes can pursue a professional career. Many athletes have very good height, skills, and physical strength. "At the 4th Hai Duong Provincial Club Basketball Tournament in 2023, some athletes were up to 1m85 tall. In terms of technique, the Sports Gymnasium Club has athletes who are mostly junior high school students, but they defeated their seniors at the Little Sparrow and Nguyen Trai Hoopers Clubs, becoming champions, showing that they have good skills," said Mr. Hoa.

Basketball is currently maintained in some localities such as Ninh Giang, Gia Loc, Cam Giang, Kim Thanh, Chi Linh, Hai Duong City... Nam Sach District has also focused on this sport. Some schools have sent 2 students to study at Hai Duong Sports Gymnasium to guide their friends.

In some schools, basketball has been widely taught and practiced, especially in schools in Hai Duong City. The demand for basketball practice is showing more positive signs than before. Parents are also more interested in this sport. Many parents regularly take their children to practice every day.

Currently, after the football field at Hai Duong Sports Center was converted into a basketball court, it has attracted a large number of students to practice, especially during the summer. There are currently 3 classes with 70, 90 and 40 students practicing every day. City clubs also come to practice regularly.

In fact, the investment in facilities for this sport is not large, just need a 28m x 15m area, a ball and a basketball. However, in some schools, there are fields, basketballs, and balls, but there are no practitioners or the practice is spontaneous, without professional guidance.

For basketball to develop strongly and sustainably, Hai Duong needs a professional team like other sports, and localities need coaches to guide and train athletes through training programs.

TIEN HUY