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| Archer Thanh Nhi brought great glory to the country and native land. Photo: Ba Tri |
In late 2023, I wrote an article to introduce archer Nguyen Thi Thanh Nhi, an outstanding citizen of Thua Thien Hue Province, the golden girl of Vietnamese archery. Calling Nhi, I was surprised to hear a clear voice on the other end of the phone: “Luckily, I'm about to reach Hue to sit the staff recruitment examination. Only a few days later, I have to return to Hanoi.”
Seizing the opportunity, I took advantage of the rare moment to meet Nhi at the cafe’ next to the Provincial Sports Competition Center. At the first meeting, I had a special impression not only about Thanh Nhi's lovely face, tall strong physique but also about Thanh Nhi's charming and open way of talking.
It has been many years since she became a member of the national archery team, and the beautiful female archer moved her "residence" to Hanoi Capital. Her weekly schedule seems to be busy because along with training and competition, Thanh Nhi is also attending the University of Physical Education and Sports, preparing for the future after retirement.
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| Vi Dinh Thuong, a cap for Hue Football Club, competing at the National First Division Football League is a full member of the National U19 Football Team. Photo: Bongdaplus |
No doubt Nguyen Thi Thanh Nhi is a great hope and has been contributing to the glory of Hue sports. She boasts a huge collection of achievements in the national and international tournaments in the past few years, including the gold medals in archery at the Asia Cup and the 2023 National Strong Teams Championship.
Right this April, Thanh Nhi played for Thua Thien Hue Team at the 2024 National Outstanding Archery Championship held right in her native land. Despite earning no gold as expected, Thanh Nhi also added 1 silver to her favorite collection.
Nguyen Thi Thanh Nhi is currently among the athletes with outstanding achievements and is a member of the National Archery Team. According to the report by the Provincial Sports Intermediate School, the school nominated 15 elite athletes and coaches to participate in the national teams and youth teams, including Athletics (1), Wrestling (5), Karate (1), Sepak Takraw (3), Archery (2), Badminton (1), Jujitsu (1), Taekwondo (1) and 1 coach providing training for the Jujitsu national youth team.
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| Nguyen Thi My Hanh and Nguyen Thi My Trang were privileged to be on the payroll of the provincial sports sector. Photo: Ba Tri |
In reality, the number of Thua Thien Hue athletes on the team has been so far much larger. A case can be mentioned: the duo Vi Dinh Thuong - Nguyen Luong Tuan Khai, caps for Hue Football Club playing in the National First Division Football League, are full members of the National U19 Football Team. This is seen as the case where even though not frequently in the team, they will be promptly present when the Fatherland needs.
While I was writing this article, Mr. Le Van Loc, the provincial Karate coach, informed me that two Thua Thien Hue Karate athletes, Le Van Tinh and Le Minh Thuan, in the national team are competing at the Southeast Asian Championship in Thailand, from this April 24 to 27.
During the same time that Nguyen Thi Thanh Nhi participated in the National Outstanding Archery Championship in 2024, the strong force of wrestlers in the national team joined forces to help the Thua Thien Hue team excellently win the first place in women's freestyle wrestling at the 2024 National Freestyle and Classical Wrestling Clubs Championship held in Vinh Phuc, with a record of 2 golds, 7 silvers, 5 silvers, and 5 bronzes. The two golds do not belong to anyone else but to two sisters, Nguyen Thi My Hanh (62kg weight class) and Nguyen Thi My Trang (57kg weight class) - the famous reigning SEA Games champions are frequently playing for the National Team.
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| Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh notched up a silver at the Asian Shuttlecock Championship. Photo: Ba Tri |
Looking back at 2023, Thua Thien Hue was proud of 20 international medals including 12 golds. The initial successes belonged to the team of athletes called up to the National Teams. Two female wrestlers Nguyen Thi My Trang and Nguyen Thi My Hanh brilliantly won 2 golds, contributing to the top achievement for the Vietnamese sports delegation at SEA Games 32. In addition, Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh notched up 1 silver at the Asian Shuttlecock Championship; Nguyen Ha Khanh Linh 1 gold, 1 silver, and 1 bronze at the Asian Youth Chess Championship, and athlete Tran Viet Duy Quan 1 gold at the Southeast Asian Karate Championship...
At the 19th Asian Games held in China, Thua Thien Hue was honored to have 3 athletes entering the competition. This is the first time Thua Thien Hue Sports has had 3 athletes participating in the Asian Games. As a result, athlete Nguyen Thi My Trang ranked 4th; athlete Nguyen Thi Thanh Nhi 4th, and athlete Nguyen Thi My Hanh 6th. Despite winning no medal as expected, the fact that the athletes competed for places to attend the Asiad was a success. This can also be seen as an achievement beyond the expectations of Thua Thien Hue sports in 2023.
Watching the tournaments with Thua Thien Hue athletes playing for the National Team, the viewers can easily witness their great maturity in expertise, experience, and prowess. Not only do they contribute to bringing fame to Hue sports but this team of athletes is also a resource for the long-term and sustainable development of the local sports. That is also why athletes like My Hanh, My Trang, Thanh Nhi, Thuy Linh... were privileged to be on the payroll by the sports leadership for them to have the opening to serve the training work and foster long-term sports development.