The Western Nghe An boy and his journey to winning 3 national Gold Medals

Knock out opponent within 1 minute

Until now, when the 2023 National Youth Kickboxing Championship has ended, many fans present in Hai Phong city at that time still cannot forget the season-ending match between Nghe An boxers and Binh Dinh boxers.

The match had just begun when Thai Ba Hung of Nghe An continuously launched dangerous attacks, causing his opponent to fall into a state of confusion and make consecutive mistakes. It took less than a minute for Thai Ba Hung to convincingly knock out his opponent.

This surprised many people because before that, the opponent from the martial arts land of Binh Dinh was considered to have an extremely excellent playing style. Before this final match, Thai Ba Hung also defeated the opponent from Dong Nai in a very short period of time. With those outstanding achievements, Thai Ba Hung excellently won the Gold Medal in the end.

Continuing the achievements, in November 2023, at the 2023 National Boxing Championship, Thai Ba Hung continued to excellently win the Gold Medal in the 75 kg men's weight class, age group 17-18 of the tournament.

Along with winning the Gold Medal at the 2022 National Traditional Martial Arts Youth and Teenager Championship, Thai Ba Hung has excellently won 3 consecutive National Gold Medals after only being involved in professional training for a short time.

Witnessing the important achievements of his student, coach Bui Duy Vinh - who accompanied and led Hung's training and competition process at Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center said that Thai Ba Hung has many outstanding advantages when possessing a height of 1m83 with long arm and leg span. Along with throwing strong and fast punches, Hung easily gains the upper hand in the competition.

Every martial artist who wants to be successful needs to have their own signature moves. Hung has two signature moves: the straight backhand and the punch. Because of his long reach, Hung's punches usually go to the opponent's face first. This straight punch is a basic and important weapon in effective boxing.

At the same time, it is the first strike to set up other attacks and distract the opponent. As for Hung's breaking attack, it is not too strong but fast. Hung's shin strikes to the opponent's thigh are often fast and accurate, enough to knock the opponent down.

However, the most important factor that makes this young man shine in tournaments is the process of persistent training. Every day, in addition to studying, Hung has to maintain 4 to 5 hours of physical training such as running, sprinting, weight training, practicing combat...

Regardless of the weather, the training is always maintained seriously to train the body and ensure the standard weight. Perhaps because of the lack of affection in childhood and having to be independent early, Hung is brave, mature and thoughtful much more than his age. That bravery has helped him become one of the individuals with the best training and competition discipline at the place where he studies.

Determined to win the Gold Medal because of the promise to her

“I used to be the thinnest boy in class, weighing only 33kg in 6th grade. It was that weak body that made my grandmother determined to enroll me in martial arts. At first, I really had no interest, but I didn’t expect that it was the important opportunity that made me change my life direction to become a professional martial arts and boxing athlete,” Thai Ba Hung confided.

Holding a picture of his grandmother in his hand, Thai Ba Hung said that until now, the image of his deceased grandmother is still deeply imprinted in his memories. Because his father died in an accident when he was 2 years old and his mother also passed away due to serious illness a few years later. His entire childhood was spent in many places in Nghia Dan, Quy Hop, Thai Hoa. Among them, Quy Hop is the place that holds the most memories for him, those were the years he lived in the love and care of his grandparents.

She was the one who encouraged Hung a lot when she learned about his intention to pursue a professional sports career. That encouragement played an important role in helping Hung get accepted into the Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center in 2020, when he turned 14.

The day I left my hometown to go to Vinh city to study, my grandmother cried a lot. At that time, all the feelings that had been stored up in her heart burst out when she thought about her disadvantaged grandson. Looking at her, Hung could only promise her: "I will definitely bring you the Gold Medal, Grandma!"

However, in the following period, due to the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, Hung's participation in competitions was interrupted. Before Mrs. Hung could see her grandson step onto the podium of glory, she discovered that she had contracted the terrible cancer. That disease took her away from Hung in 2022.

She passed away before he could fulfill his promise, which made Hung extremely remorseful. It was not until 4 months later, when he participated in the 2022 National Traditional Martial Arts Youth and Junior Championship, that Hung was able to fulfill his promise to her by bringing home the Gold Medal. That was also the first time he participated in a national tournament and really made an impression by achieving the highest achievement.

That is also Hung's gratitude to his two coaches, Bui Duy Vinh and Bui Duy Tuan. Because since the day he left his family to come to Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center, they are the teachers and fathers who have accompanied and supported him in his journey of training and competition.

Sharing about the difficulties in the world of boxing and martial arts, Thai Ba Hung said that injuries are a constant difficulty for athletes during both training and competition. This is no exception for Hung. Just recently, Hung's finger was injured, then abscessed and swollen, with the risk of necrosis, requiring surgery at the provincial hospital. Or a serious injury to the tibia in early 2023 during the competition also caused Hung to take a long time to recover.

“Injury is not only a physical challenge but also a big mental challenge. The worry about not being able to compete, the pressure to recover quickly and the fear of the possibility of re-injury are factors that put great pressure on the athlete’s psychology. And each person has to overcome that on their own,” Hung confided.

"Looking back at the journey I have gone through, I consider it a meaningful youth when I was able to live with my passion. In 2024, I am working hard to practice Kick Boxing to be selected to participate in the "Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games". With the companionship of two coaches whom I consider as my two fathers, Bui Duy Vinh and Bui Duy Tuan, I believe that that dream will come closer and will become a reality...".

Athlete Thai Ba Hung