Kim Son: 15-year-old swimmer breaks national record at SEA Games

The swimmer born in 2002 excellently won the bronze medal in the 400 freestyle after 3 minutes 54 seconds 20, breaking the national record of Hoang Quy Phuoc by 77% of a second.

In his first time participating in the SEA Games, Nguyen Huu Kim Son surprised everyone with a bronze medal in the 400m freestyle, an event that is not necessarily his forte.

Kim Son emerged at the World Swimming Championships in Hungary last July. He was among six Vietnamese swimmers participating in the tournament. As the second youngest on the team, after Nguyen Thi Nhat Lam, Kim Son left the strongest impression.

In the 1,500 meter freestyle qualifying round, the swimmer currently playing for An Giang broke the national record with 15 minutes 29 seconds 90. This achievement is also better than the SEA Games record, held by Lam Quang Nhat.

That result made the leaders of the Vietnamese swimming team decide to organize a qualifying competition to select tickets to attend the 2017 SEA Games between Kim Son, Huy Hoang and Quang Nhat, the excellent swimmers in the longest event of swimming.

Not being able to compete in the 1500m freestyle at the SEA Games, Kim Son put that sadness aside to win a bronze medal in the men's 400m freestyle. Photo: Duc Dong.

But this idea was criticized by fans and later Huy Hoang and Quang Nhat were still the two representatives of Vietnam, even though Quang Nhat did not race.

Unable to participate in the 1,500m, Kim Son sadly registered for other events, including the 400m freestyle. At the national tournament in October 2016, the 2002-born swimmer did not swim the 400m freestyle. There, his senior from Da Nang, Hoang Quy Phuoc, broke the national record with 3 minutes 54 seconds 97.

But when entering the SEA Games this morning, “Han River Otter” failed to qualify for the 400m freestyle. In return, Kim Son perfectly replaced his senior, breaking the national record by 0.77 seconds, and for the first time standing on the podium in the final round with a bronze medal.

Kim Son won a gold medal in his first SEA Games appearance and is the youngest Vietnamese swimmer to achieve this honor. Photo: Duc Dong.

Some features of Nguyen Huu Kim Son

Year of birth: 2002

Club: An Giang

Outstanding achievements:

National gold medal 4x100m mixed relay 2016 (An Giang)

Holds the national record for 1,500m freestyle with 15 minutes 29 seconds 90

400m freestyle bronze medal SEA Games 2017

Holds the national record in 400m freestyle with 3 minutes 54 seconds 20

According to VNE