Female wushu fighters train at the Chao Anouvong stadium in Vientiane.  --Photo Dee Sao Lao

Lao wushu fighters in training ahead of SEA Games 

Lao male and female wushu fighters in various weight categories are hoping to be trained by a professional Chinese coach in the run up to the 31st South-East Asia (SEA) Games to be held in Hanoi, Vietnam, from May 12-23.
Currently the martial artists are being coached by three Lao trainers with experience of national level competition, as well as experienced fighters at the national and international levels. 
The Ministry of Education and Sports has allocated funding to support a Chinese wushu trainer, who will work with the wushu fighters at the National Sports Training Centre over the next 90 days to boost their medal chances at the SEA Games.
But the Secretary General of the Lao Wushu Federation, Mr Sitha Yathotou, said the federation had insufficient funds to support the training regime.
The ministry’s Elite Sports Department did not plan to contact a Chinese trainer concerning training assistance, he added.
The ministry plans to send five male and two female wushu fighters and two trainers to the SEA Games.
However, martial artists have not undergone regular training over the past two years and did not take part in any national or international level competitions in 2021 because of the Covid-19 outbreak.
This year, they will also get the chance to compete at the 11th National Games, to be hosted by Xieng Khuang province in December.
The Lao wushu team won three bronze medals at the 30th SEA Games held in the Philippines in 2019.

By Sangkhomsay Bubphanouvong
(Latest Update March 23, 2022)