2009 Open Aerobics Competition for Humanities Students: A Fresh Beginning

The University of Social Sciences and Humanities Team 1 excellently won the championship in the 2009 Open Aerobics Competition for Humanities Students – Song Da 7 Urban Investment Cup, held last night (April 9th) at the Thanh Xuan District Sports and Culture Center, with a total score of 75/100. Second and third place went to the University of Foreign Languages ​​(VNU) Team and the University of Social Sciences and Humanities Team 2, respectively.

Representatives from the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee of the Youth Union and Student Association, a large number of students from various universities, representatives of sponsors, sports coaches, and representatives of the press attended to watch and cheer on the competing teams. The tournament was hosted by the Executive Committee of the Student Association and the Department of Physical Education of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, under the sponsorship of Song Da 7 Urban and Industrial Park Investment Joint Stock Company, a subsidiary of Song Da Corporation.

Ten competing teams presented ten vibrant and visually stunning performances, showcasing skillful movements and flexible structures. Some teams even impressed with the inclusion of male athletes, such as the Hanoi University of Education Team 1, the Thanh Do College Team, the Dai Nam University Team, and the International Faculty Team (Vietnam National University, Hanoi) with four Chinese student athletes. This confirms the tournament's appeal and the meticulous training and preparation undertaken by the participating teams over nearly two months.

As stipulated in the competition rules and communicated to each team before the official competition, the judging panel scored the teams based on professional aerobic competition rules with two criteria: structure score and performance score. Therefore, the scores given by the judging panel to each team in yesterday's competition were considered quite strict.

According to the judges, some teams, while showcasing impressive and unique performances, mistakenly incorporated movements from general gymnastics or gymnastics, such as somersaults, side rolls, or rainbow bends. These are all prohibited movements in aerobic competitions, while the seven basic aerobic steps stipulated in the competition rules were not adequately demonstrated.

Although the University of Social Sciences and Humanities Team 1 still made some mistakes regarding uniformity or accuracy of movements, they demonstrated many difficult movements and very flexible formation movements. For teams with questions, the judges provided explanations immediately after each segment of the competition. Given the nature of a sports competition, the scores for each segment were clear and specific, providing an objective basis for the tournament to select the best teams.

However, regardless of their ranking, all the participating teams contributed to a vibrant and colorful Aerobic competition, leaving a positive impression on the delegates, judges, and especially the nearly 1000 enthusiastic spectators.

Aerobics is a sport very suitable for students in maintaining their physique, improving flexibility and endurance – contributing to better health for studying and working. The 2009 Open Aerobics Competition for Humanities Students, the first of its kind organized in universities in Hanoi, demonstrated the efforts of the organizing committee as well as the enthusiastic participation of the teams in working together towards the goal of expanding and improving the quality of this sport among students. Hopefully, this beneficial event will help the organizing committee and participating teams gain more experience for similar competitions in the future.