Introduction
Thach Kim Tuan is a Vietnamese weightlifter from Ho Chi Minh City. He became widely known after winning a gold medal at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games in Singapore, a historic achievement for Vietnamese sports at that event.
Career
Background
According to Thanh Nien newspaper, before the 2010 Youth Olympics, Thach Kim Tuan was described as a "poor but determined young weightlifter". He had never trained abroad and had few opportunities to compete internationally. At this event, because his usual 50kg category was not included, he had to compete in the 56kg category. In the pre-competition ranking check, his result was still lower than that of an Armenian athlete.
2010 Youth Olympics
On the evening of August 15, 2010 (Vietnam time), Thach Kim Tuan, then 16 years old, competed in the 56kg weightlifting event in Singapore. In the snatch, he succeeded on his first attempt at 110kg, failed at 114kg on his second, and succeeded at 116kg on his third. His direct rival, Xie Jlawu of China, lifted 117kg on his third attempt, 1kg more than Tuan.
In the clean and jerk, Tuan failed at 139kg while Xie Jlawu lifted 137kg. On his final attempt, he successfully lifted 140kg, pushing the Chinese athlete to second place. With a total of 256kg, 2kg more than his rival, Thach Kim Tuan won the gold medal, the first gold medal for Vietnamese sports at the Youth Olympics.
After winning gold, he received a bonus of 500 USD from Mr. Hoang Vinh Giang, vice chairman of the Vietnam Olympic Committee.
Post-victory remarks
According to Thanh Nien, after his victory and before entering the doping test room, Thach Kim Tuan said: "Right now my body is stiff because I am so happy with this result. I strictly followed the coach's instructions during the competition and was lucky to succeed. Competing in front of cheering spectators and many opponents made me a bit overwhelmed, but I overcame this barrier. Let me thank everyone, especially my older sister who raised me after my mother passed away."
Coach Huynh Huu Chi also told Thanh Nien about the decision to attempt 140kg on the final clean and jerk, describing it as a choice between winning gold or bronze, not accepting second place.
Key milestones
- 2010: Won gold in the 56kg weightlifting event at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore, with a total of 256kg.
- This was the first gold medal for Vietnamese sports at the Youth Olympic Games.