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| Residents of Da Tay A Island participate in a stick-pushing competition in a joyful atmosphere |
"The Theater of Dreams"
“Pass to the left wing!”, “Great dribble!”, “Shoot, shoot now!”, “Goal!” These lively shouts from the artificial grass football field on Truong Sa Lon Island continuously echo, drowning out the wind and crashing waves during a stormy sea afternoon at the end of 2024.
Participants wearing shorts, numbered jerseys, and cleats; with goalposts and nets surrounding the pitch; with coaches and referees running back and forth, sweating along with every player’s movement… The football matches played by officers and soldiers on Truong Sa Lon Island truly captured the focused attention of our group of reporters. Focused partly to find the right camera angles, to try and capture the most beautiful moments - but the rest, perhaps, was the surprise.
And indeed, from the atmosphere and equipment to the players’ skills and the quality of the matches… things here are not much different from those on the mainland. In fact, having grown accustomed to the uncomfortable weather conditions, the soldiers still deliver powerful long passes and precise shots on goal.
It’s not just football - officers and soldiers here also prove themselves to be formidable players in volleyball, skillfully executing cross-court spikes, stacked attacks, overhand and underhand passes with impressive finesse. And somehow, laughter seems to echo more often from this court. The reason? With strong winds being a regular guest, there are plenty of moments when everyone was playing harmoniously, the ball goes one way… and the players go another.
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| Officers and soldiers on Truong Sa Lon Island play football after training hours |
Thanks to its large area, Truong Sa Lon Island currently has 2 artificial turf football fields, 7 volleyball courts, 10 badminton courts, and 18 table tennis tables, along with a mini park equipped with various exercise and recreational equipment to help both military personnel and civilians on the island stay fit and unwind. And on the other islands and outposts of Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelago, during the HQ-561 naval voyage with the Naval Region 4 delegation at the end of 2024, whenever sports and physical training come up, journalists from across the country often hear the soldiers jokingly refer to it as “The Theater of Dreams”…
Certainly, there is no "favoring one side over the other" here. Due to the size and space of the islands, the remaining island points are smaller, so the investment in equipment and sports training facilities will depend on the actual situation. To meet the need for exercise and enjoy the benefits that sports bring, islands in the Vietnam’s Truong Sa Archipelago, such as An Bang, Da Dong, Da Tay, etc., have been equipped with modern and diverse training tools like horizontal bars, parallel bars, table tennis tables, volleyball courts, and gyms, … helping the officers and soldiers here to practice and relax according to their interests and talents.
“There are those who do weightlifting, some others prefer training on the horizontal bar, and still others choose table tennis as their top pick. But it’s the top pick, not the only one. Since some sports focus on strength, like weightlifting, while others require quick reflexes, like table tennis, most soldiers also engage in other activities besides their favorite one, as these exercises complement each other well.” said Major Duong Ngoc Tan, Political Commissar of An Bang Island.
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| Sack racing |
Strengthening the bond between soldiers and civilians
In addition to sports training, on some islands such as Truong Sa Lon and Da Tay A, during holidays and weekends, traditional games and ethnic sports are often organized - such as ring toss, stick pushing, and tug of war. At these events, everyone joins in - men and women, the young and old - creating a lively atmosphere filled with laughter and further strengthening the close bond between the military and the people.
“Besides TV, newspapers, and movies for entertainment, the officers and soldiers sometimes organize activities like these for us to join. The prizes for the winners may be just a pack of cookies, a bottle of soda, or sometimes just smiles and applause, but it still brings joy to us - and especially to the children - for the whole day,” shared Vi Van Nam, a resident living on Truong Sa Lon Island, cheerfully after missing… all three tries in the ring toss game.
On Da Tay A Island, the space where games and sports competitions such as stick pushing and tug of war take place mainly in the open courtyard in front of the spacious and well-built Great Solidarity House of the Vietnamese Ethnic Groups. These activities aren't limited to holidays and weekends - they're also organized whenever there are guests coming from the mainland. At those moments, the lively sounds of chatter and laughter seem to drown out even the crashing waves of the open sea.
“Joining in and sharing joy through games and sports activities has helped islanders feel much less distant from the mainland. More importantly, it has strengthened the bond and solidarity between us and the officers and soldiers on the island - we all feel like a family,” shared Vi Thu Trang, a resident of Da Tay A Island, while cheering during the stick pushing competition.