With a gold medal at the SEA Games, a championship at the U23 Southeast Asian tournament, and qualification for the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026, the U22/23 Vietnam national team was awarded Team of the Year - a fitting recognition of their exceptional season.

Striker Nguyen Dinh Bac, born in 2004, received Young Athlete of the Year and was also the central figure in the Most Impressive Sports Moment of the Year category, for the viral scene where he crowned coach Kim Sang Sik with a pith helmet in celebration.

“I feel happy and proud to receive this award,” said Dinh Bac. “It gives me more confidence to train harder and continue contributing to Vietnamese football.”

At the same time, Coach Kim Sang Sik was honored as Foreign Expert of the Year, securing a landslide victory in his category after a year of success with U23 Vietnam.

“All coaches are worthy of this title - I’m just the one standing in for them tonight,” the South Korean coach said modestly. “I want to thank everyone, especially Coach Park Hang Seo, for his encouragement. I regret we couldn’t play our finals on home soil, but I’m deeply moved to see Vietnamese fans flooding the streets to celebrate.”

In other award categories, sharpshooter Trinh Thu Vinh was named Female Athlete of the Year after winning one Asian gold medal, four SEA Games golds, and breaking three SEA Games records.

Ha Minh Thanh took home Male Athlete of the Year for his achievements in shooting, including two golds at the Asian Shooting Cup and two SEA Games golds (with one new record set).

Additional highlights from the gala included:

Lifetime Achievement: Cung Binh Di (former shooting athlete and coach)
Coach of the Year: Duong Hoang Long (karate)
Team Performance of the Year: Mixed-gender 4x400m relay team
Fan Favorite Athlete: Tran Thi Thanh Thuy (volleyball), winning the public vote for a second consecutive year

Dai Nam