Swimmer Anh Vien named best Vietnamese athlete of 2017

Vietnam's swimming star, Nguyen Thi Anh Vien

The result came as no surprise, as the Can Tho-born girl produced an extraordinary 2017, winning two golds and one silver medal and breaking one record at the fifth Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG), in addition to a sparkling collection of eight individual golds, two silvers and three records at the 29th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.

Accordingly, Anh Vien claimed first place of the vote with 1,560 points, just 21 points more than the runner-up, weightlifter Thach Kim Tuan, who also enjoyed a successful year with impressive gold medals won at both SEA Games and the IWF World Championships.

The remaining faces in the top ten athletes of 2017 included “speed queen” Le Tu Chinh (athletics, 1,274 points), Le Thanh Tung (gymnastics, 875 points), Le Quang Liem (chess, 787 points), Nguyen Thi Huyen (athletics, 763 points), Bui Thi Thu Thao (athletics, 733 points), “hot girl” Duong Thuy Vi (wushu, 721 points), Nguyen Huu Kim Son (swimming, 547 points) and Trinh Van Vinh (weightlifting, 375 points).

Concerning the “Best trainer of the year” category, the victory went to Mai Duc Chung with 593 points. In 2017, Chung led Vietnam’s women’s football team to surpass Thailand to win the 29th SEA Games gold medal. Later, he also served as the acting head coach of the men’s national squad, and helped the team to overcome Cambodia in the 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers, contributing significantly to Vietnam’s booking a place in the final round.

Huynh Huu Chi and Dang Anh Tuan, the respective trainers of lifter Thach Kim Tuan and swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, subsequently landed in second and third places with 542 and 503 points.

Powerlifter Le Van Cong had no opponents in the vote for the best athlete with disability in 2017, settling for the first-place position with 880 points. During the past year, Cong performed fruitfully at international competitions, wining gold medals and breaking records at both the ASEAN Para Games and the World Para Championships.

Powerlifting trainer, Nguyen Hong Phuc, who stands behind Cong’s success, was named the best trainer for athletes with disabilities in 2017 with 504 points, above Dong Quoc Cuong (swimming, 350 points) and Dang Van Phuc (athletics, 207 points)./.

NDO