Hundreds of Vietnamese packed a meeting hall in downtown Ho Chi Minh City late Wednesday afternoon to meet and chat with Vietnamese swim star Nguyen Thi Anh Vien.

The event was organized in the main hall of the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Culture House in District 1.  Many gathered four hours ahead of the chat, walking around the area to see photos of Vien taken during her competition at the 28th Southeast Asian Games that closed on Tuesday in Singapore, and eagerly waiting for the moment to interact with their sporting idol.

Many Vietnamese fans of Nguyen Thi Anh Vien gather in front of the main hall of the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Culture House hours before the meeting with the swim star in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City on June 17, 2015. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Before starting the chat, Lam Dinh Thang, permanent deputy secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City chapter of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, awarded Vien VND20 million (US$920) taken from the Fund for Young Talents of the city.

Vien is not only a gifted swimmer who always strives while learning and training, but also a modest person who knows how to keep her feet on the ground even when she is widely praised for her hard-earned glory, Thang said in the opening speech.

The 19-year-old swimming talent won eight gold medals and broke eight records at the 28th Southeast Asian Games following a lengthy training regime in Vietnam and the U.S.

Thang also expressed his hope that Vien will continue to achieve more accomplishments in both her personal life and career.

Lam Dinh Thang (R), permanent deputy secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City chapter of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, awards Vien VND20 million ($920) taken from the Fund for Young Talents of the city during the chat with the swim star at the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Culture House in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City on June 17, 2015. Photo: Tuoi Tre

At the beginning of the hour-long chat, Vien told the audience that preparing for the live chat was much more stressful than preparing to jump into the swimming pool for a training session.

During the chat, Vien revealed that her first swimming teacher was her grandfather, the second was a dragonfly and the third is her current coach, Dang Anh Tuan.

Answering a question by a Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper journalist, Huy Tho, the moderator of the chat, on the authenticity of a new Facebook account bearing her name which recently appeared on the social network, Vien said she has yet to sign up for any Facebook account.

Replying to another question by an audience member, Nguyen Thi Hoang Mai, about whether she would accept a naturalization offer from a foreign country with much better living and working conditions than Vietnam, Vien said she would turn it down.

“I will continue my career to bring glory to Vietnam as the country is where I was born and grew up,” she said.

Coach Dang Anh Tuan (R) answers a question during the chat between swim star Nguyen Thi Anh Vien (center) and her fans at the Ho Chi Minh City Youth Culture House in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City on June 17, 2015. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The questions were among over 350 sent to Tuoi Tre for Vien ahead of the chat.

Those who asked questions belong to all walks of life, ranging from elementary school children to elderly people.

The organizer picked the people who asked the ten best questions to receive autographed pictures of Vien.

The live chat was aired on the sports channel of Ho Chi Minh Television, as well as at tuoitre.vn.

On Monday, Vien and coach Tuan sat for an interview with Tuoi Tre to discuss her life to prove her strong spirit and aspirations to overcome challenges.

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