The determination and impressive achievements of Nghe An female track and field athlete

Efforts to overcome difficulties

Born in 2006, the youngest child in a Tho ethnic farming family in Nghia Mai commune (Nghia Dan), Le Thi Tuyet Mai had a very difficult childhood. Her father died early of cancer when she was less than 1 year old. Her mother worked hard to raise her two children and send them to school. Tuyet Mai and her brother also had to get used to farming and housework early to help their mother.

During her school years in her hometown, Le Thi Tuyet Mai was a dark-skinned, skinny girl compared to her peers. However, in return, Mai had outstanding health and agility, often leading in physical education tests at both primary and secondary school levels. In early 2020, Tuyet Mai was selected for the secondary school athletics team of Nghia Dan district to participate in the 19th Phu Dong Sports Festival of Nghe An province.

At the Phu Dong Sports Festival that year, due to being too nervous in her first time competing in Vinh city, Le Thi Tuyet Mai only finished 4th in the 400m girls' race. However, the strong running steps and impressive acceleration of the little girl from the Phu Quy mountainous region caught the eye of coach Nguyen Thi Thuan of the athletics department of the Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center.

After the athletics competition finished, Ms. Thuan met with Le Thi Tuyet Mai to propose a selection to the center. When Mai returned to Nghia Dan to ask her mother for advice, her mother advised her: "The decision is yours, if you feel it is suitable and you can pursue a long-term athletic career, then choose it."

After many weeks of thinking, in September 2020, Le Thi Tuyet Mai decided to go to Vinh city to become a young athlete of the Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center. “At first, I just thought that becoming an athlete, being sponsored by the State would help my mother to have less hardship. But after less than a week in Vinh, I felt very homesick and wanted to go back to my mother immediately. During the training process, I suffered some leg injuries. At that time, I felt very tired, stressed and wanted to give up.

But luckily, in the coaching staff of the athletics team, there are female coaches like Ms. Ha Thi Kim Anh and Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuan. They understand the difficulties of female athletes like me, so they have always been by my side to encourage and motivate me a lot. Thanks to that, I have tried every day to improve myself and achieve the goals set in my training,” Le Thi Tuyet Mai confided.

Conquer the record

In 2021, due to the complicated developments of the Covid-19 pandemic, many sporting events were canceled or postponed, Le Thi Tuyet Mai was not able to compete in any official tournament. It was not until July 2022 that the athlete from Nghia Dan was able to compete in her first tournament, the National Youth Athletics Championship held in Kon Tum province.

And initial success came to the female athlete of the Tho ethnic group when she won 3 medals at this tournament, including 1 Gold Medal in the 4x400m mixed relay, 1 Silver Medal in the women's 400m race and 1 Bronze Medal in the women's 400m hurdles race.

More than a month later, at the 2022 National Youth Athletics Championship held in Ho Chi Minh City - an important tournament to select new talents for the national team, Le Thi Tuyet Mai won 1 more Silver Medal in the women's 400m race, 1 Silver Medal in the women's 400m hurdles race and 1 Bronze Medal in the women's 4x400m relay race.

Also in 2022, at the 9th National Sports Congress held in Quang Ninh province, Le Thi Tuyet Mai and teammates Lo Thi Thuy Huong, Bui Thi Nhuan, and Kha Thanh Truc of the Nghe An athletics team won a Bronze Medal in the women's 4x400m relay.

Le Thi Tuyet Mai continued to maintain her impressive achievements at the age of 16-17 in 2023. First, at the Ho Chi Minh City Thong Nhat Speed ​​Cup - an annual tournament that brings together many stars on the Vietnamese running track, Tuyet Mai won 1 Gold Medal in the 400m hurdles and 1 Silver Medal in the 400m.

At the 2023 National Youth Athletics Championships held in Ben Tre province, Le Thi Tuyet Mai won Gold Medals in her two favorite events: 400m and 400m hurdles.

Then, at the 2023 National Youth Athletics Championship held in early August, also in Ben Tre province, Le Thi Tuyet Mai continued to maintain her impressive form in both events to win 2 Gold Medals. In addition, she also won 1 Silver Medal in the women's 4x400m relay.

At the end of October, in her first time participating in the National Athletics Championship - the highest level domestic tournament in athletics, gathering the best athletes in the country in this sport, Le Thi Tuyet Mai won 1 Silver Medal in the 4 x 200m relay, 1 Bronze Medal in the 4x400m relay and 1 Bronze Medal in the women's 4x400m hurdles.

Those impressive achievements helped Le Thi Tuyet Mai to be called up to the national youth athletics team to prepare for theSoutheast Asian Youth Athletics Championships2023. And at this tournament that took place from December 7-9 in Bangkok (Thailand), the female athlete from the Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center excellently won 4 Gold Medals, including 1 individual Gold Medal in the 400m race and 3 Gold Medals in the relay events: 4x1400m women, 4x400m women and 4x400m mixed.

Notably, in the women's 4x400m relay, Le Thi Tuyet Mai and her teammates Ngo Thi My Duyen, Nguyen Thi Kim Thanh and Vu Thi Tra My set a tournament record with a total time of 3'48"09 to win the Gold Medal, breaking the record set by the Thai youth athletics team 9 years ago (in 2014) of 3'49"79.

To train young athletes with potential and long-term commitment to athletics is not easy and not something that can be done overnight, but requires a process. In addition to the enthusiasm of the coaches, there is also the will, determination and passion of the athletes. At this time, the Nghe An youth athletics team possesses faces with qualities, determination and will to rise, in which, Le Thi Tuyet Mai is a prominent face with clear progress through each tournament.

- Coach Ha Thi Kim Anh - Head of Athletics Department of Nghe An Sports Training and Competition Center.

The 17-year-old runner shared with Nghe An Newspaper: “In recent years, Nghe An athletics has had seniors participating in the national team competing in major regional and continental tournaments such as Nguyen Dinh Vu, To Thi Nga, Kha Thi Thanh Truc. The journey ahead is still long and full of obstacles, but the successes of the seniors are the motivation and the goal for me to strive for”./.