SEA Games 33, Day Four (December 13): Vietnam wins 6 more gold medals, temporarily ranking third.

VHO - The fourth day of competition (December 13) saw the Vietnamese sports delegation win six more gold medals, but still dropped to third place in the overall medal standings. While host Thailand maintained a strong momentum in accumulating gold medals, Vietnam's pursuit at the top continued to be anchored by familiar strengths such as karate, taekwondo, and athletics, interspersed with bright spots in shooting, swimming, and weightlifting.

Vietnam's medal list as of December 13th.

HCV (6): Hoang Thi My Tam (Karate - kumite - 61kg women), Nguyen Thanh Truong (Karate - kumite - 84kg men), Dinh Thi Huong (Karate - kumite - 68kg women), Tran Thi Anh Tuyet (Taekwondo - sparring 53–57kg women), Nguyen Thi Oanh (Athletics - 5,000m women), Ta Ngoc Tuong - Nguyen Thi Ngoc - Le Ngoc Phuc - Nguyen Thi Hang (Athletics - 4x400m mixed relay)

HCB (10): Nguyen Thi Thao – Le Thi Mong Tuyen – Nguyen Thanh Thao (Shooting - 10m air rifle team women), Vo Van Hien (Karate - kumite - 75kg men), Nguyen Thi Loan (Taekwondo - 49–53kg women sparring), Ly Hong Phuc (Taekwondo - 68–75kg men sparring), Bao Khoa – Dao Thien Hai – Vo Thanh Ninh – Vu Hoang Gia Bao – Tran Quoc Dung – Pham Thanh Phuong Thao (makruk chess - standard chess), Nguyen Hoai Huong (Weightlifting - 53kg women), Tran Van Nguyen Quoc (Swimming - 200m freestyle men), Le Thi Tuyet (Athletics - 5,000m women), Le Thi Cam Tu (Athletics - 200m women), Vo Thi My Tien (Swimming - 400m individual medley)

Bronze Medals (7): Le Thi Mong Tuyen (Shooting - 10m air rifle individual women), Bui Bich Phuong - Vu Thi Trang (Badminton - women's doubles), Nguyen Thi Thu Trang (Weightlifting - 48kg women), K'Duong (Weightlifting - 60kg men), Vu Thi Ngoc Ha (Athletics - triple jump), Nguyen Thuy Hien (Swimming - 100m breaststroke women)

Looking at the performance of each sport, December 13th in Vietnam resembles a painting with two contrasting colors. On one side is... karate and athletics – these are the key areas that bring in "real gold," creating momentum and setting the pace for medal wins for the entire delegation.

The other side is Swimming, shooting, weightlifting, badminton, chess – these are sports where Vietnam has won medals, even coming very close to gold at times, but mostly settling for silver and bronze.

Athletics "Double win": Oanh opens with gold, mixed 4x400m relay breaks SEA Games record.

On the athletics track, Vietnam had a memorable day with both a gold medal rich in symbolism and a gold medal that was more about statistics.

In the women's 5,000m event, Nguyen Thi Oanh chose an active running style, setting the pace early, and together with Le Thi Tuyet, created a gap from the chasing group as the race entered the second half.

In the final laps, Oanh accelerated, pulling away from Tuyet to cross the finish line first with a time of 16 minutes and 27.14 seconds , winning the gold medal.

This is Oanh's 13th SEA Games gold medal – a milestone that is both statistically significant and provides a morale boost, as it marks the moment the "golden girl" officially enters the competition and begins her quest for success in the following days.

The second highlight was the 4x400m mixed relay , where the team of runners Ta Ngoc Tuong, Nguyen Thi Ngoc, Le Ngoc Phuc, and Nguyen Thi Hang created a true breakthrough performance.

Ngoc Tuong opened the race with a significant advantage, setting the stage for the following three races to unfold exactly as planned. Vietnam finished first with a time of 3 minutes 15 seconds 07 , which was recorded as a SEA Games record .

In athletics, Vietnam continued to accumulate medals in other events: Le Thi Tuyet won a silver medal in the women's 5,000m; Le Thi Cam Tu won a silver medal in the women's 200m and notably broke the national record that had stood for 15 years ; Vu Thi Ngoc Ha won a bronze medal in the women's triple jump despite imperfect conditions due to injury.

Karate wins 3 gold medals: the foundation for the gold medal on December 13th.

If we had to choose one sport that "carried gold" for Vietnam today, it would be karate – where the team won 3 consecutive gold medals , creating a feeling of being "in sync, at the right time".

Hoang Thi My Tam opened the day with a dominant victory in the women's -61kg kumite event, bringing home Vietnam's first gold medal of the day.

Nguyen Thanh Truong followed up with a gold medal in the men's -84kg kumite, a weight class that demands physical strength and composure, where each strike can decide the outcome of the match.

Dinh Thi Huong completed karate's "hat-trick" of gold medals with a victory in the women's -68kg kumite event, successfully defending her title from the previous competition.

Taekwondo wins another gold medal, but it's a shame about the finals.

In taekwondo, Vietnam won a gold medal thanks to Tran Thi Anh Tuyet in the women's 53-57kg category. The final match was not easy; at one point, Anh Tuyet was trailing and a controversial situation arose, but the Vietnamese fighter maintained her composure in the decisive round to win convincingly and bring home the important gold medal.

However, taekwondo also left a bittersweet taste as Vietnam won two more silver medals : Nguyen Thi Loan (women's 49–53kg) and Ly Hong Phuc (men's 68–75kg).

Swimming: Many medals but lacking a "gold" medal, Nguyen Quoc nearly caused an upset.

Vietnamese swimmers won medals on December 13th, even coming very close to winning gold, but ultimately failed to secure any gold .

The highlight was the men's 200m freestyle final, where 17-year-old swimmer Tran Van Nguyen Quoc made a breakthrough in the final meters and was only 0.06 seconds behind the gold medal .

That gap in swimming is extremely small, and it accurately reflects the current state of Vietnamese swimming: very close to the top, but needing a little more sharpness to turn "close" into "enough" .

Meanwhile, his senior teammate Nguyen Huy Hoang only finished fourth in the 200m freestyle event, failing to make the top 3.

In the women's 400m individual medley , Vo Thi My Tien won the silver medal, continuing her consistent form. Meanwhile, Nguyen Thuy Hien brought home the bronze medal in the women's 100m breaststroke .

Vietnamese shooting continues to accumulate medals: a silver medal in the women's 10m air rifle team event and a bronze medal in the women's individual event won by Le Thi Mong Tuyen . These achievements are important in maintaining competitiveness, but in the overall standings, they are more of a long-term asset than an immediate jump in ranking.

In weightlifting, Vietnam won a silver medal from Nguyen Hoai Huong (women's 53kg) and bronze medals from Nguyen Thi Thu Trang (women's 48kg) and K'Duong (men's 60kg). These medals were "true weightlifting achievements": direct competition, small margin of error, and dependent on the skill and composure in each lift.

Badminton secured a bronze medal in the women's doubles with Bui Bich Phuong and Vu Thi Trang , while Makruk chess recorded a silver medal in the standard chess category.

After four days of competition, the overall standings show a huge advantage for host country Thailand: leading with 95 gold medals, 60 silver medals, and 39 bronze medals (out of a total of 194 medals) .

Indonesia rose to second place with 31 gold medals , while Vietnam came in third with 30. Vietnam now has a slight edge over Indonesia in total medals ( 113 compared to 110 ), but still ranks behind by one gold medal .

The gap in gold medals between Vietnam and Thailand has widened, while the race for second and third place is likely to remain close, as a single day of strong performances in key sports could instantly change the order.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/sea-games-33-ngay-thu-tu-1312-viet-nam-co-them-6-hcv-tam-dung-thu-ba-188225.html