Nguyen Thi My - Nghe An's outstanding female athlete with 2 World Championships
The year 2025 marked a new milestone in the career of Nguyen Thi My, the “Golden” girl from Nghe An, when she made a great contribution to helping the Vietnamese national team win two major championships in a row: the World Cup and the Sepak Takraw World Championship (King's Cup). With this achievement, Nguyen Thi My was honored to represent the high-performance athletes of the Nghe An Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center to attend the 2025 Nghe An Provincial and National Patriotic Emulation Congress.
Nguyen Thi My was born in 1998 in Dien Tan commune, old Dien Chau district (now An Chau commune) - a peaceful countryside of Nghe An province. Fate brought her to sepak takraw when coach Ho Thi Minh Thuan - who directly selected young talents for Nghe An province, discovered special qualities in a 6th grade girl. From the end of 2009, My began to get acquainted with the ball at Nghe An Province Sports Training and Competition Center.
With a 15-year journey of training and gradually asserting herself through national youth tournaments and national tournaments, Nguyen Thi My was honored to be called up to the national team in 2015, when she was only 17 years old.
In the national team, Nguyen Thi My has gradually become an indispensable link in the 3-person and 4-person team lineup - two events that are the traditional strengths of Vietnamese women's sepak takraw.
Nguyen Thi My is not the one who scores the most points directly, but she is the "brain" of the team in the role of setter 2 - a position that requires delicate technique, quick judgment and perseverance in every coordination. Not ostentatious, not noisy, but always present at the right time - that is Nguyen Thi My's typical playing style.
In March 2025, the Vietnamese women's team entered the Sepak Takraw World Cup Championship, determined to break the dominance of Thailand - the host team and defending champion. In the final match of the 4-person women's team event, Vietnam had a breathtaking comeback against Thailand, winning 2-1 (12-15, 15-8, 15-7). Nguyen Thi My played the entire match as setter 2, coordinating with teammates Nguyen Thi Yen, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Huyen and Tran Thi Ngoc Yen to create a solid and flexible game. This is the first time the Vietnamese women's team has won an official World Cup in the team event, opening up great hope for continental and world tournaments.
Just four months after winning the World Cup, the women's team continued their journey at the 38th King's Cup Sepak Takraw World Championship, taking place from July 22-28 in Hatyai, Thailand. In the final match of the 4-person team event - a rematch with Thailand, the dramatic scenario took place again. Losing the first round 12-15, Vietnam rose up strongly, winning the next two rounds with scores of 15-8 and 15-7. Once again, Nguyen Thi My was in the starting lineup, playing a key role in helping the team turn the tables, successfully defending the world championship for the third consecutive time (2022, 2023, 2025). Not only winning in terms of score, the Vietnamese women's team won in terms of tactics, courage and spirit of overcoming difficulties, of which My is one of the most typical symbols.
Head coach of the national Sepak Takraw team, Tran Thi Vui, commented: “Nguyen Thi My is a quiet player, not a star on stage, but is the key to connecting the whole team. With solid technique, alertness and a strong psychological foundation, she is the person any coach would want in the squad.”
Two major championships within just half a year are the clearest proof of Nguyen Thi My's peak performance. For Nghe An sepak takraw, she is a source of pride, a testament to perseverance and the right training strategy. The Nghe An provincial sports sector once awarded My nearly 100 million VND for her outstanding contributions, and recognized her as one of the important pillars helping the province's women's sepak takraw go far at the National Sports Festival and national championships.
This year, Nguyen Thi My turns 27, still playing consistently at a high level and is the first choice in the national team. Ahead of her are the 33rd SEA Games, the 2026 Asian Cup, and many new goals.
To honor Nguyen Thi My's contributions to Nghe An's sports in 2025, she deserves to represent hundreds of high-performance athletes from Nghe An Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center to attend the Nghe An Provincial Patriotic Emulation Congress in 2025. With the achievements she has achieved in her career, as well as in 2025, it is hoped that Nguyen Thi My - the "Golden" girl of Vietnamese and Nghe An sports will continue to affirm the mettle of Nghe An's young generation on the path to conquering new heights, contributing more to the country's sports.
