Athlete Nguyen Thi Oanh determined to break the record for winning gold medal at SEA Games

(Dan Tri) - Track and field athlete Nguyen Thi Oanh hopes to win her 5th consecutive gold medal at the SEA Games as she is working hard to prepare for the tournament in Thailand.

With 12 gold medals won at 4 consecutive SEA Games (SEA Games 29, 30, 31 and 32), Nguyen Thi Oanh is considered the "gold mine" of Vietnamese athletics in the highest tournament in Southeast Asia for nearly 10 years.

At the 33rd SEA Games held in Thailand in December this year, Nguyen Thi Oanh received many expectations from fans to continue to bring glory to Vietnamese sports , and at the same time, the athlete born in 1995 will witness her become the first Vietnamese track and field athlete to win gold medals in 5 consecutive games.

Athlete Nguyen Thi Oanh with a collection of 12 SEA Games gold medals, is aiming for her 5th consecutive SEA Games gold medal (Photo: Vietnam Sports and Physical Training Department).

This expectation is completely well-founded when Nguyen Thi Oanh's performance is still very stable, having just won all 4 gold medals at the recent 2025 National Athletics Championship.

Notably, good news for Nguyen Thi Oanh when she was selected as a typical representative to attend and report on personal achievements at the 11th National Patriotic Emulation Congress taking place in early December. Before attending the Congress, Nguyen Thi Oanh had a conversation with Dan Tri reporter about this honor.

Every medal is valuable because it is exchanged with sweat and tears.

First of all, congratulations on being nominated for an honor at the 11th National Patriotic Emulation Congress, a well-deserved recognition for your lasting and inspiring contributions to Vietnamese sports over the past time. How do you feel about receiving this special honor?

- Becoming one of the nominated and honored faces at the 11th National Patriotic Emulation Congress, I personally feel extremely honored and happy that on my career journey, I have always received attention and recognition from the Party and State; and have been loved and supported by many people.

Everyone's support and concern is a great motivation for me to continue to strive and make efforts to achieve more achievements within my ability. Also at this congress, I will have a report on my personal achievements so I feel very excited, worried and proud.

Mentioning Oanh is mentioning the "golden girl" of Vietnamese athletics, do you remember how many glories you have won in the international and domestic arenas?

- Over the years, thanks to the dedication of the coaches as well as my own hard work, in the international arena I won 12 SEA Games gold medals in 4 consecutive editions from 29 to 32, including one time breaking the SEA Games record.

In 2023, I will also be honored to become the first Vietnamese athlete to win 4 individual gold medals at the SEA Games. In addition, I won a team gold medal at the 2016 Beach Games, a bronze medal at the 18th Asian Games (2018), and won a gold medal at the 2023 Asian Indoor Athletics Championship.

At the National Sports Festival, I won 7 Gold Medals, 1 Silver Medal (HCB), and held 4 Games records in the 1500m, 5000m, 3000m Steeplechase and 10,000m events. At the National Championships, I won my first Gold Medal in 2017 and I always try to train and make efforts to protect and develop those results. My hard work helped me continue to win 4 Gold Medals at the recent National Championships.

In total, I won 39 gold medals at national championships, holding 5 national records in the 3000m steeplechase, 5000m, 10,000m, half marathon and marathon.

In my opinion, Vietnamese athletics has had many generations of famous and outstanding athletes over the years. Therefore, I am very happy to be able to contribute this small effort to the overall development of Vietnamese athletics.

In your opinion, which medal required you to work the hardest and overcome the most challenges, and which medal do you feel most proud of in your career?

- For me, each medal represents effort, hard work to overcome difficulties and challenges, so I always cherish them no matter what color the medal is.

Every medal, even the failures, help me look back at my efforts, appreciate and be grateful for the support and encouragement everyone has given me.

Everyone knows that behind every medal there are countless efforts and silent sacrifices. Can you share the secret of your training process as well as your competitive spirit that helps you maintain your form and win glory throughout such a long journey?

- I think that as an athlete pursuing a professional career, no one has a better secret than trying and working hard every day, reminding themselves to be more responsible and disciplined with themselves.

Having won many titles and certainly also encountered many failures, have you ever felt regretful or disappointed with your best friend?

- There is a saying that is always true: “Failure is the mother of success”. There were times when, not only during training but also after unsatisfactory tournaments, my spirit collapsed with many regrets and disappointments with myself.

Then I try to relax my mind, rest and think about the goals I have set and tell myself to keep trying.

Moreover, when many fans message me to share that they always consider me as their motivation, I have to try even harder. I feel very happy when I can give some positive inspiration to anyone.

A strong comeback after a period of illness

It is known that there was a time when you had health problems, even thought of having to stop your career at the top. However, you overcame everything and made an impressive comeback, asserting your class on the women's track. Can you share more about that journey, what helped you not give up?

- That time put me in a state of crisis and considered it the end of my career.

It was the end of 2014 and almost the whole of 2015, a very sad time for me, when I discovered that I had Glomerulonephritis, unable to continue training and competing. In fact, I had to miss the 28th SEA Games in Singapore at that time.

But at the most difficult time, I felt very lucky and happy when beside me was always the care and encouragement of my family, teachers and friends; besides the care of the National High-Level Athlete Training Center, the enthusiastic care and treatment from the medical agency helped me overcome the crisis to return to my passion.

Athlete Nguyen Thi Oanh had a difficult time in her career when she suffered from glomerulonephritis, but she came back strong after recovering (Photo: Vietnam Sports and Physical Training Department).

As soon as I recovered, I found that I always had a passion for running and I was determined to get back into it. Luckily, my affinity for athletics still exists and continues to this day.

On the track, you are always known as a hard-working, disciplined and serious person. However, in real life, people see Nguyen Thi Oanh as cheerful, active and very humorous. What do you think about this interesting comment?

- I think that during practice, I always have to be serious and focus on my professional work. Being serious helps me do well in my lesson plans and daily exercises.

But besides that, I also need to have some time to relax, to help myself mentally, to prepare myself for training sessions as well as tournaments that are quite stressful and pressured. Both of these things will complement each other to help me always achieve the best state.

Nguyen Thi Oanh is an athlete that makes opponents in Southeast Asia wary and respectful, having won 12 gold medals in the SEA Games, the most recent of which was 4 gold medals (SEA Games 32). Are you confident that you will continue to do so in the upcoming SEA Games 33 in Thailand?

- In every tournament, there will always be opponents that we need to compete with and we always have to work harder and make more efforts. Any subjectivity and complacency will have to pay the price.

So in the upcoming SEA Games 33, I will always remind myself to focus, try harder, and work harder so that I can complete the goals I have set. I also hope to win the gold medal this time, to bring gold to the country for the 5th consecutive time.

So how have you prepared for the 33rd SEA Games this December?

- The other athletes and I in the team always practice, closely following the training plan the coach has built since the beginning of the year.

Besides, we participate in tournaments as well as have appropriate training cycles and focus on the important task of this year, which is to win gold at the SEA Games. Currently, we are always trying hard and with the highest determination and spirit towards the upcoming SEA Games in Thailand.

You are an idol to many people, conversely, who do you idolize in the athletics world in Vietnam or abroad and what do they help you learn from them?

- Before, I used to follow and really liked my seniors running the 3000m distance in the national team. And later, when I had more conditions to follow and watch the tournaments, I followed more, to see the spirit of everyone competing as well as the concentration and determination of the athletes for each of their tournaments.

I myself have learned a lot when I see people always try and work hard like that. I think that for each person to achieve something, it is not an easy path, and no matter what position, everyone needs to practice hard and try their best.

I know you have a master's degree, so after retiring will you pursue a career as a coach or do you have other personal goals?

- It is true that after I no longer compete in high-performance sports, I will continue my passion through coaching and I hope that I will contribute to training generations of good athletes who achieve high results. In each role, I expect to do well, with the goal of helping Vietnamese athletics in particular and Vietnamese sports in general to develop further.

Athlete Nguyen Thi Oanh has received many noble awards thanks to her tireless contributions to Vietnamese athletics (Photo: Quy Luong).

One last question, do you have a favorite life quote and what does it mean to your dreams and your playing career?

- In life, there are many good sayings to motivate people. I often encourage myself: "There is no path paved with roses, but we must be brave, strong and diligently move towards our dreams and goals." I believe that everyone will find sweet fruit for themselves through that diligence.

Thanks Nguyen Thi Oanh for this interesting conversation!

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/vdv-nguyen-thi-oanh-quyet-pha-ky-luc-gianh-hcv-tai-sea-games-20251030140202386.htm