Hanoian boxer wins historic Asian gold medal for Vietnam

Hanoian boxer Nguyen Thi Tam fought to bring home a historic gold medal for Vietnam at the Asian Women’s Boxing Championships 2017, which concluded in Ho Chi Minh City on November 8.

Nguyen Thi Tam is the first Vietnamese boxer to claim an Asian-level title.

Tam overcame strong opponents from Thailand, the Philippines and Mongolia in order to set up a final clash with Pang Choi Mi of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the 51kg weight category.

Her fast and accurate counter-blows helped Tam to beat the DPRK competitor with a score of 3-2, thus becoming the first Vietnamese boxer to be crowned champion at an Asian-level tournament.

Vietnam’s previous best result in women’s boxing was the silver medal secured by Ngo Thi Phuong in the 48kg weight discipline at the 2008 Asian championships.

Ahead of the tournament in HCM City, Nguyen Thi Tam had previously won a bronze medal at an international competition held in Bulgaria.

In addition to Tam, four other Vietnamese representatives, namely Le Thi Bang, Luu Thi Duyen, Nguyen Thi Huong and Tran Thi Oanh Nhi, also made their way through to the decisive matches, but were unable to defeat their opponents for the overall titles.

With a tally of one gold, four silver and one bronze medal, Vietnam’s female boxers experienced their most successful Asian-level tournament so far.

The Asian Women’s Boxing Championships 2017 took place from November 2 to 8, with the participation of over 100 fighters representing 22 countries and territories across Asia.

The boxers vied for medals in ten weight categories, ranging between 48kg and 81kg.

(Source: NDO)