HO CHI MINH CITY — Nguyen Hai Dang enters the 10th National Sports Games of 2026 as the man to beat in men’s singles badminton, but the path to a second gold medal runs through a crowded field of veterans, rivals and teenage challengers, vietnam.vn reported. Dang, who plays for Ho Chi Minh City and won the title at the 2022 Games, is ranked 75th in the world — far ahead of every Vietnamese opponent in the draw — yet the gap in the world rankings does not reflect how tightly contested national matches have become.
The Games, Vietnam’s largest domestic sporting event, are held every four years and return to Ho Chi Minh City as the main host for the first time in 20 years, with additional competitions in Dong Nai, Dong Thap and Hanoi. The main program runs from Nov. 14 to Dec. 12, 2026, featuring 48 sports and 973 medal events across 34 venues, 31 of them in Ho Chi Minh City. Organizers expect roughly 12,000 officials, coaches and athletes, 2,000 referees, and about 200,000 guests, spectators and tourists, vietnam.vn reported. The opening ceremony is scheduled for the evening of Nov. 21 at Saigon’s waterfront park, with the closing ceremony on Dec. 12 at Phu Tho Gymnasium; another outlet, by contrast, lists the opening ceremony for Nov. 20, a one-day discrepancy between the two.
Hai Dang’s ranking gap versus the reality of Vietnamese badminton
Dang’s world ranking of 75 makes him Vietnam’s highest-ranked male player by a wide margin: Le Duc Phat of the Army is 207th, Phan Phuc Thinh of Ho Chi Minh City is 209th, and Nguyen Tien Minh of Ho Chi Minh City is 248th, according to vietnam.vn. But the rankings understate the domestic picture. Vietnamese men’s badminton remains extremely competitive, and national matchups are often unpredictable, the outlet noted.
Le Duc Phat is considered Dang’s biggest rival. The two have battled fiercely for years, and despite recent injuries that affected his form, Phat has still produced impressive performances at international tournaments, vietnam.vn reported.
Phan Phuc Thinh and 43-year-old legend Nguyen Tien Minh
Phan Phuc Thinh, 23, is another name to watch. A Ho Chi Minh City player progressing slowly but steadily, his unexpected run to the second round of the 2026 Vietnam Open showed he can compete with higher-ranked opponents, the outlet reported.
Nguyen Tien Minh, a legend of Vietnamese badminton, is 43 and a former world No. 5. His physical condition is clearly his main obstacle now, but his talent and experience remain remarkable: at the Ho Chi Minh City Sports Festival in April, he won the men’s singles gold after Dang suffered an injury in the final. Even if the win came somewhat easily, reaching the final at 43 was a notable achievement, vietnam.vn reported.
Young talents Tran Hoang Kha, Nguyen Tat Duy Loi and Tran Quoc Khanh
Beyond the veterans, the men’s field includes young talents Tran Hoang Kha of Ho Chi Minh City (born 2006), Nguyen Tat Duy Loi of Lam Dong (born 2008) and Tran Quoc Khanh of Bac Ninh (born 2006). Though none has yet produced standout international results, they are expected to bring youthful energy, boldness and exciting surprises, vietnam.vn reported.
Nguyen Thuy Linh dominates the women’s draw
If the men’s competition should be fiercely contested, the women’s singles shows clear dominance by Nguyen Thuy Linh of Dong Nai, ranked 27th in the world. She is not only Vietnam’s best female player but also a regular at high-level international tournaments, and her elite experience and technical mastery place her above her rivals, vietnam.vn reported.
Her most notable challenger is likely Vu Thi Trang of Ho Chi Minh City, currently ranked 93rd. A former emblematic figure of Vietnamese women’s badminton with extensive experience and a highly technical style, Trang, 34, can no longer maintain the physical level of her peak, the outlet noted.
Teenagers Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen and Bui Bich Phuong eye the future
Among the young women, the two most promising are Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen of Dong Nai (born 2011) and Bui Bich Phuong of Hanoi (born 2007). The fact that Thu Huyen, at only 15, gets to compete in the country’s biggest arena testifies to remarkable developmental potential. Beating more experienced opponents will not be easy, but the young players can still deliver exciting matches and lay the groundwork for the next generation of Vietnamese badminton, vietnam.vn reported.
What the 2026 National Sports Games mean for Vietnamese sport
The Games serve as a benchmark for training and coaching, a talent-discovery platform and the selection ground for the next generation of Vietnamese athletes. fr.laodong.vn reported that the organizing committee is headed by Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Dao Cuong, with nine additional members, and that early events — bowling, karate, athletics, table tennis — begin before the opening ceremony, while Muay Thai starts Oct. 20, according to vietnam.vn. With 36 delegations from 34 provinces and cities plus police and military forces competing, badminton’s place at the Games carries weight well beyond a single gold medal.
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