ACC Co-sponsored the Sports Festival of the Vietnamese Community

The Vietnamese Students Association in Beijing organized the Sports Festival on 1-7 October 2015, supported by the Vietnamese Embassy in Beijing and ASEAN-China Centre (ACC). Around 200 athletes and 600 supporters took part in the Festival. The purpose of the event was to strengthen communication and friendship among the Vietnamese students and community in Beijing as well as in Tianjin, fostering the spirit of unity and cooperation through sports game. More than 200 students from 26 universities in Beijing and 10 universities in Tianjin competed in six sports events namely soccer, badminton, table tennis, tennis, athletics (track and field) and tugging. 

The Opening of the Sports Festival was held at the Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU) on 1 October 2015, attended by around 200 students, officials of the Vietnamese Embassy and ACC as well as members of the Vietnamese community. Charge d’affaires of the Vietnamese Embassy and Minister Counsellor Nguyen Hoai Anh, in his opening remarks, expressed deep appreciation to the Vietnamese Students Association for organizing the event and to ACC for its great support, and wished all the students a fun filled week, hoping they would compete in the spirit of sportsmanship with fairness, ethics, respect, and a sense of fellowship. Director of Education, Culture and Tourism Division (ECTD) of ACC Mr. Tri Purnajaya, in his remarks, praised the Vietnamese students for organizing the event and their efforts in raising a sense of cultural identity.  He also stressed the important roles of the students in promoting and contributing to ASEAN-China relations. 

At the Closing Ceremony of the Sports Festival at BLCU on 7 October 2015, officials from the Vietnamese Embassy, ECTD Director of ACC as well as other sponsors presented the awards to the winners. A member of the Vietnamese Student's Organizing Committee Mr. Hoang Tuan Minh in his remarks, expressed his appreciation to ACC for its contribution and was very pleased that the event was a success.

The seven-day Sports Festival was held at different universities in Beijing respectively, namely BLCU, China Agricultural University, University of Science and Technology Beijing, University of International Business and Economics, and Beijing Sports University. A number of participating students wore typical Vietnamese traditional dresses and entertained the guests with Vietnamese musical and dance performances during the Opening and Closing Ceremonies.