Hoang Xuan Vinh refused to apply for the title of personal hero.

The shooter who just won a gold medal and a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics believes that his success is due to the contributions of many people, and that it is unreasonable to request the title of Hero of Labor for him personally.

Hoang Xuan Vinh was awarded the First Class Labor Medal by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Photo:Ngoc Dung.

On the afternoon of August 16, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc held a ceremony to congratulate Hoang Xuan Vinh and the athletes of the Vietnamese sports delegation who had just returned from the 2016 Rio Olympics.

“Hoang Xuan Vinh has brought joy to the entire Vietnamese people. It is a great pride to see the Vietnamese flag and national anthem raised high at the Olympic medal ceremony. The Olympics is the number one global playground, we were not invited to participate before. Recently we were able to participate but never won a gold medal, everything only changed after Hoang Xuan Vinh's success,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc congratulated.

On the occasion of meeting the Prime Minister, Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Olympic Committee Hoang Vinh Giang asked the head of the Government to consider awarding the title of Hero of Labor to the shooter who helped Vietnamese sports win the first gold medal at an Olympic Games.

Immediately after hearing the above request, Hoang Xuan Vinh asked permission to stand up and speak. He frankly refused to request the title of hero for himself.

“The achievements I have today are not only due to my own efforts but also to the great contributions of experts, coaches, teammates and people working in sports for many years and generations. Therefore, there should be no title for me personally. If possible, I would like to give this title to the Vietnamese sports industry,” said Hoang Xuan Vinh.

On this occasion, the shooter born in 1974 also expressed his wish that Vietnamese sports would invest in a modern shooting range like other countries so that shooting could achieve more achievements in the international arena."I promise to continue to train, improve my skills and competitive spirit, gain more achievements, and bring glory to the country. I am a soldier, I will always serve the country," he said.

“Very modest, admirable, and commendable,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc further assessed the shooter, who holds the rank of colonel. “I would like to take this opportunity to request that the sports sector pay attention to both training conditions and nutrition for athletes. In particular, there should be no shortage of ammunition for shooters to practice. I hope that Hoang Xuan Vinh’s success at the 2016 Rio Olympics will be a boost for Vietnamese sports to move forward and develop sustainably.”

With the achievement of winning one gold medal and one silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics,Shooter Hoang Xuan Vinh was awarded the First Class Labor Medal, head coach of the Vietnamese shooting team Nguyen Thi Nhung received the Second Class Labor Medal and the Korean expert received the Friendship Medal.

According to VNE