Vietnamese athlete strikes gold at Asian taekwondo championship
Friday, June 18, 2021, 11:08 GMT+7
Vietnam’s Truong Thi Kim Tuyen beat her Uzbek opponent on Thursday night to claim the women’s 49kg weight class gold medal at the 2021 Asian Taekwondo Championships in Lebanon.
Tuyen eked out a win over Uzbekistan’s Madinabonu Mannopova with a score of 25-24.
Ranked as the No. 1 seed in the 49kg weight class, Tuyen had a bye during the competition’s first round.
In the second and third matches, the Vietnamese athlete overwhelmed her competitors from Tajikistan and Taiwan to make it to the finals.
Tuyen will be Vietnam’s only taekwondo fighter competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games this summer.
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| Vietnamese martial artist Truong Thi Kim Tuyen (second left) and other athletes on the podium during the medal ceremony at the 2021 Asian Taekwondo Championships in Lebanon. Photo: Vu Xuan Thanh / Tuoi Tre |
The 2021 Asian tournament, the 24th edition of the regional competition, has attracted 337 athletes from 28 countries and territories. It is due to last until Friday.
Vietnam sent three martial artists to participate in the competition.
Aside from Tuyen, Ho Thi Kim Ngan competed in the 53kg weight class and Nguyen Thi Anh Tuyet contested the 57kg weight class.
In addition to Tuyen’s success, Tuyet brought home a silver medal in the women’s 57kg weight class on Wednesday.
As planned, the Vietnamese taekwondo team will move to Kazakhstan to continue their training on Saturday.
On July 19, expert Kim Kil Tae and Tuyen will board a direct flight to Tokyo to attend the Olympics, scheduled to take place from July 23 to August 8.
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