The lovable "giant"

(Baonghean) - Friends, colleagues and acquaintances of Coach Vu Le Hoang of Nghe An Weightlifting often call him Hoang "bulky" or Hoang "giant", originating from his tall body with a weight of nearly 100kg. However, in this article, I want to tell about a very different Le Vu Hoang - a simple, lovable, and emotional teacher Hoang in the eyes of generations of students.

“Starting from athletics, finishing in weightlifting” – Coach Vu Le Hoang humorously shared about his journey to pursue a sports career. Born and raised in the countryside of Dien Ky (Dien Chau), Vu Le Hoang showed his talent for sports early on due to his advantages in appearance, physical strength and agility. In 2000, he graduated from the Athletics Department of Tu Son University of Sports and Physical Education (Bac Ninh) and was admitted to the Nghe An Provincial Sports Training Center. “At that time, our province had not yet established a weightlifting sport. It was not until 2003 that the center had a direction to form this sport and I was lucky to be the one chosen to “pave the way”. After a period of preparation, in 2004, weightlifting officially appeared on the sports “map” of Nghe An” – Coach Vu Le Hoang recalled.

Coach Vu Le Hoang guides the athlete on technique. Photo: Minh Quan

As a "pioneer", opening a special sport with high requirements for facilities and athlete quality, Coach Vu Le Hoang encountered many difficulties and challenges. The most difficult task was athlete selection, because at that time weightlifting was a new sport, somewhat unfamiliar to the people of the province. "The requirement for athlete selection must start from the age of 11-13, but when it comes to convincing the children's families, when talking about weightlifting, they often think of it as hard work, hardship... so they do not want their children to pursue it. I have to explain and convince the parents a lot about the teaching curriculum from low to high, from light to heavy, from general theory to technique, muscle endurance... but it is not always successful" - the "giant" coach shared. Not to mention that, even though the children have been brought to the team, training them to develop their full potential, to persevere in their passion and stick with the athlete career is not easy. In fact, many athletes have given up halfway because of psychological confusion about their development direction after their competition period ends. At those times, coaches must also play the role of teachers, parents, and friends to listen and analyze thoroughly for students to understand, avoiding wrong orientations that affect their future.

Nghe An weightlifting team is not a formidable opponent compared to other major provinces and cities in the country, but looking at the achievements over the competition seasons, we can see the great efforts of the teachers and students. “Nghe An weightlifting team just participated in the 2015 National Weightlifting Championship, winning 2 silver medals in the clean and jerk and total. Before that, in 2014, they won 1 gold medal, 1 silver medal; in 2013, they won 3 gold medals, 1 bronze medal…” - Coach Vu Le Hoang said.

11 years of being attached to the sport of weightlifting in Nghe An are all the years of joy - sadness, advantages - difficulties, failures - successes on the shoulders of the "giant" Vu Le Hoang. But he said, it is difficult, but even more difficult, he still sticks to his career, because he understands that it is a common difficulty of the province's sports, in the limited economic conditions. On the other hand, thinking about the students who wholeheartedly believed in and wholeheartedly pursued sports with him, he could not bear it... Talking about his students, the resolute face, which seemed fierce in the initial impression, suddenly relaxed, a bright smile shared warm memories. How Tham (athlete Le Thi Tham, who just won a gold medal in weightlifting at the Southeast Asian Weightlifting Championship - PV) cried when she first entered the weightlifting gym; how Suong and Thu insisted on quitting training, making the teacher feel sorry for and regret the potential athletes to the point of tears; even the story of the teacher playing the role of a psychologist to "manage" the love affairs of his "rebellious" students...

Those who have met Coach Vu Le Hoang in real life will surely recognize his love and passion for weightlifting. He is so passionate that he spends his own money to buy a set of weights worth tens of millions of dong for his students to practice, and then supports and contributes money with his students to buy medicine when they are injured... Being absorbed in his sports career, he got married quite late compared to his peers. This year, he is 37 years old, still wandering around renting a house near the training center for convenience in traveling, practicing and being close to his students. The lovable "giant" smiled and said, when it comes to sports, passion is always greater than anything...

Phuong Chi