Affirming the aspirations of youth

Thanh Duy's achievements not only bring glory to the country's sports , but are also a vivid proof of the aspiration, will to overcome difficulties and indomitable spirit of Vietnamese youth on the journey to affirm their position in the continental arena.

Thanh Duy (born in 2009), from Khanh Hoa , is a promising "seed" of Vietnamese weightlifting who has shown his talent early at the national youth tournament. AYG 2025 is the biggest competition that Thanh Duy has participated in. Although he is considered to have the ability to compete for medals at AYG 2025, the fact that the 16-year-old weightlifter overcame strong opponents to win the gold medal is considered a surprise to experts and fans.

In the men's 65 kg category, Thanh Duy competed with strong opponents from China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kazakhstan, Indonesia and the Philippines. In the snatch, Thanh Duy only achieved 120 kg, ranking 4th. However, Thanh Duy maintained his concentration and decided to "go all in" in the clean and jerk.

The weightlifter from Khanh Hoa registered a fairly high weight and successfully lifted 153 kg, then 156 kg, surpassing strong opponents from China, Kazakhstan and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to take the lead. With the above parameters, Thanh Duy was confirmed by the Organizing Committee to break the Asian youth and AYG record with a clean and jerk of 156 kg. Not only that, with a total lift of 276 kg, Thanh Duy also broke the AYG record.

According to experts, Thanh Duy's 156 kg clean and jerk is really unbelievable because when practicing before the official competition, this weightlifter's best clean and jerk performance did not exceed 140 kg. However, with determination and a fighting spirit of not giving up, Thanh Duy had a push beyond his ability, to make a strong breakthrough at the most important moments. Before winning the gold medal at AYG 2025, Thanh Duy had won 3 silver medals in the men's 65 kg category, with the respective weights of 115 kg snatch, 148 kg clean and jerk, and 263 kg total at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championship in July in Kazakhstan.

Thanh Duy's "exceeding the limit" 156 kg lift reminded experts and fans of similar achievements that Vietnamese weightlifters had made in the past. At the 30th SEA Games in 2019 in the Philippines, Pham Thi Hong Thanh, although 16 kg behind host athlete Elreen Ann in total lift before the last push, did something extraordinary when she successfully lifted 124 kg (previously she had only succeeded in 107 kg) to win the gold medal with a total lift of 214 kg, exactly 1 kg more than her opponent.

Previously at the 29th SEA Games in 2017 in Malaysia, Trinh Quang Vinh was 9 kg behind the 2016 Olympic runner-up - Eko Yuli (Indonesia) before the decisive push (297 kg compared to 306 kg). But with the spirit of not giving up, the Vietnamese weightlifter decided to perform a push of 172 kg (before that, he successfully performed the first push of 162 kg, and the highest snatch was 135 kg) and succeeded to the surprise of the coaching staff and his opponent.

In the end, Quang Vinh had a total lift of 307 kg, 1 kg more than his opponent, breaking 2 records for clean and jerk and total lift in the 62 kg weight class at the congress. Quang Vinh, Hong Thanh and now Thanh Duy are proof of the Vietnamese spirit of not giving up, representing the strong breakthrough ability of Vietnamese athletes in the international arena.

Thanh Duy's achievement is even more valuable as this is the first gold medal of the Vietnamese Sports Delegation at AYG 2025. Thanh Duy's gold medal is not only a personal joy, but also a testament to the spirit of overcoming difficulties and rising up with determination and aspiration of the young generation of Vietnam.

At the age of 16, Thanh Duy has demonstrated the qualities that Vietnamese sports are always proud of: resilience, perseverance and constant progress. In the context of Vietnamese sports being heavily invested in to prepare for major arenas such as the SEA Games, Asian Games or Olympics, Thanh Duy's gold medal is a great source of encouragement, adding motivation to many other young athletes.

This success shows that systematic, scientific and long-term visionary youth training programs are beginning to bear fruit. Thanh Duy’s victory is a strong message to today’s young generation of Vietnam: “Dare to dream, dare to overcome challenges to assert yourself.”

From small gyms, from the silent sacrifices of teachers, families and athletes themselves, the golden light of the medal is not only a reward for talent, but also a crystallization of Vietnam's will. AYG 2025 is not only a place to honor achievements, but also a launching pad for Vietnamese sports dreams to reach out to the world. And in that journey, Thanh Duy is a typical image of a new generation - brave, enthusiastic and always aiming for the top.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/khang-dinh-khat-vong-cua-tuoi-tre-178173.html