3rd Asian Indoor Games open in Hanoi: a historic milestone for Vietnamese sport

HANOI – On the evening of 30 October 2026, the 3rd Asian Indoor Games (AIG 3) officially opened at My Dinh National Stadium. It was the first time Vietnam hosted a continental multi-sport event, marking a step change for the country's sport after years of taking part mainly as a guest delegation. The opening ceremony was attended by state leaders, representatives of the Olympic Council of Asia and a large number of sports officials and athletes from countries and territories across the region. My Dinh Stadium was fully mobilised for the ceremony, while indoor competition venues were arranged inside the My Dinh National Sports Complex. The Games ran from 30 October to 8 November 2026, bringing together Asian delegations in indoor sports and martial arts. To serve the event, indoor arenas, fields and supporting infrastructure in Hanoi were upgraded, with the My Dinh Indoor Athletics Palace a key newly built venue. As host, the Vietnamese delegation targeted strong results in its traditional strengths while relying on home advantage and crowd support. The organisers identified security, medical services and transport as key tasks throughout the Games. Experts viewed AIG 3 as a comprehensive test of Vietnam's organisational capacity. The experience gained from the Games was seen as a foundation for the country to aim at larger sporting events in the future and to boost the domestic sports movement. The Games closed on 8 November 2026, ending more than a week of competition and leaving a mark as the first continental multi-sport event hosted by Vietnam.