Hanoi (VNA) - Football training exercises such as “three against three” and “cat catch mouse” proved a hit with students from the Hanoi-Amsterdam high school and the Sports Centre for Hanoi Disabled at the 10-10 Sports Centre stadium in the capital last week.
Entitled “Vietnamese Soccer Experience”, the Women in Soccer Sports Exchange Programme was led by four US coaches and paid for by a grant from the US Department of State Bureau of Educational and Culture Affairs.
Dinh Ngoc Van Huong, who is in the 10th grade at Hanoi-Amsterdam school, said: “The US teachers were very enthusiastic despite the heat. I am very happy that I was able to take part in the programme.”
Nguyen Thi Dung, who is physically disabled, was another eager participant.
The four US coaches are Janine Szpara, Leslie Gaston, Emily Patterson and Katy Daly.
Janine, who is a USSF “A” Licensed Coach and a former coaching assistant at Stanford, Cornell and Santa Clara universities, said women’s football was one of the most popular sports in Vietnam , as reflected in the national team’s FIFA world ranking of 37.
Outside the stadium, Nguyen Thi Thuy, Programme Associate, said she was surprised by how energetic the training had been considering the heat.
The “American-Vietnamese Soccer Experience” has the dual purpose of improving sports infrastructure for Vietnamese girls and disabled athletes aged 12-18, as well as strengthening ties between the people of the US and Vietnam.
The programame includes three half-day training sessions in Hanoi , HCM City and Dong Nai province.
The organising board will select the 15 best footballers to take part in an eight-day visit to two American cities during which they will take part in football training sessions and social and cultural outreach activities.
The event was co-organised by the US-Vietnam Trade Council Education Forum, the Vietnam Administration of Sports and Physical Training and the Vietnam Football Federation and its affiliated football departments at the provincial level, as well as Hong Bang University in HCM City and the Dong Nai Department of Sports and Culture.--Enditem
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