Athletics: Gold medal after terrible glomerulonephritis

Without needing the two gold medals in the women's 1,500m (competed on August 24) and women's 5,000m (August 25) just won at the 2017 SEA Games, the presence of 22-year-old Nguyen Thi Oanh at the 2017 SEA Games is already a miracle.

Athlete Nguyen Thi Oanh helps teammate Pham Thi Hue at the finish line of the women's 5,000m race. Photo: Nguyen Khanh

Coach Tran Van Sy, Oanh's close teacher in the national team for many years, emotionally confided in us as his student prepared to step up to the podium to receive the women's 1,500m medal on the afternoon of August 24.

In the hot afternoon sun of Bukit Jalil, very few reporters and fans were present at the athletics field. In addition to the time conflict with the football match, the name Nguyen Thi Oanh in the 1,500m event was still too unfamiliar to everyone. After winning the silver medal in the 3,000m obstacle course in Myanmar 4 years ago, Oanh "disappeared" from the athletics community for quite a while. The reason was her terrible glomerulonephritis.

“It was in December 2014, after coming back from a competition I suddenly saw many swollen areas on my face. Many people told me I was just having an allergic reaction, but I felt uneasy, I know my body well so I went to see a doctor and found out I had glomerulonephritis”, Oanh said, still unable to hide her shuddering face when recalling the horrifying memory.

Heart and kidney diseases are always a nightmare for athletes, especially those in sports that require a lot of physical strength and endurance like athletics. Nguyen Thi Oanh is no exception. “I was shocked when the doctor told me I had kidney disease. My first thought was to retire. It was hard to accept that. But gradually, after a period of examination and monitoring, I learned that my disease was just beginning and there was still a chance of cure,” Oanh said.

But life is not always that easy. Oanh had to stop training and competing since the beginning of 2015, and also missed the 2015 SEA Games. However, determination and passion helped the girl from Bac Giang overcome everything. By the end of 2015, Oanh had completely cured her kidney disease and returned to the race track.

Of course, the difficulties are now multiplied, Coach Tran Van Sy confided that he and his student were once doubted about Oanh's determination to return to the track. The fact that Oanh's specialty, the 3,000m steeplechase, was eliminated from the 2017 SEA Games made her gold dream even more fragile. Coach Sy changed Oanh's target to the 1,500m and 5,000m events, and then she won both.

“I really admire my student’s determination. The most commendable thing about Oanh is that she has a very good knowledge of physiology, clearly understands her body’s problems to coordinate properly with the coaching staff. When Oanh had just recovered from her illness, I was very worried about choosing a training program for her. Both teacher and student had to practice hard because they were afraid of the signs after the illness,” said Coach Sy.

Having gone through countless hardships to reach glory, Oanh understands better than anyone the value of helping hands around her. Perhaps that is why a touching scene took place on the 5,000m race track on the afternoon of August 25.

Pham Thi Hue, a Vietnamese athlete who also competed in this event, collapsed on the field due to exhaustion after finishing, Oanh hurriedly came to her side to help her teammate stand up. It was truly an inspirational image for everyone present at Bukit Jalil Stadium, especially when they heard the full story behind Nguyen Thi Oanh's glory!

According to TTO