Vietnam wins first-ever silver at world taekwondo championships

Vietnam’s Truong Thi Kim Tuyen won a silver medal in the women’s under-46kg category at the ongoing 2017 World Taekwondo Championships in Muju, Republic of Korea (ROK).

This is the first silver medal secured by Vietnamese taekwondo at the world championship arena.

En route to the final match, Tuyen finished off Napaporn Charanawat of Thailand with the close score of 9-8 in a tense semifinal.

It was a nail-biting finish to the match after Tuyen’s opponent managed to reduce the score to 8-9 with only 10 seconds to go. During such a short period of time, the Vietnamese fighter managed to keep Charanawat from scoring any additional points despite being put under immense pressure.

Truong Thi Kim Tuyen (left) and other medalists of the women's under-46kg category.

Facing the ROK’s rising star, Sim Jae-Young, in the decisive encounter, Tuyen was unable to produce a shock result and suffered a 9-18 defeat after three rounds of play. Two years ago, both Sim Jae-Young and Tuyen attended the world championships but failed to make the podium.

In early 2017, Tuyen was crowned the gold medalist of the 49kg category at the Southeast Asian championships and the Asian youth competition.

Thanks to her outstanding performance so far this year, Tuyen promises to be one of the gold medal hopes of the Vietnam taekwondo team at the upcoming 29th SEA Games in Malaysia.

The 2017 World Taekwondo Championships will run until June 30./.

( VNF/NDO )