The "golden" girl of Nghe An traditional martial arts

As the second child in a farming family in the rice-growing Yen Thanh countryside, Le Thi Mai loved to learn martial arts since childhood, but her parents did not agree. Then Mai had to put her hobby aside to devote time to studying. One day in early 2016, while studying in her second year of a bachelor's degree in nursing at Vinh Medical University, during a time off from school, Mai went alone to Vien Quang Pagoda in Nam Thanh Commune (Nam Dan) to visit the pagoda.

Here, seeing the children with graceful moves, and being introduced to the Buddhist Quang Quyen sect by monk Thich Khai Tri, Mai was fascinated and determined to study. To facilitate her cultural studies and martial arts, Mai applied to study martial arts at Phat Quang Quyen Street (Vinh City) every Monday and Wednesday evening. Mai's passion for martial arts has urged her to spend all her free time practicing martial arts. Talking about her time, Mai shared, "In the morning I am at the hospital, in the afternoon I study culture, so I only have time in the evening. In addition, on weekends when I have free time, I go back to the temple to both learn martial arts and learn religion taught by monk Thich Khai Tri."

Knowing their daughter's passion, Mai's parents had to follow. From her passion, along with the encouragement of her family and the teachings of her teacher, although she has only been involved with the Quang Quyen Buddhist sect of the Nghe An Traditional Martial Arts Association for nearly 2 years, Mai has shown a special talent with boxing and weapons.

Le Thi Mai (far left) won two medals at the first International Vietnamese Martial Arts Festival. Photo: Phan Giang

Mai's martial arts moves are becoming more and more solid and professional. Since learning martial arts, Mai has seen a lot of changes in herself. Although she is only 1m50 tall and weighs more than 40kg, she has never been sick. From being shy and timid, she is now confident, quick to respond to all situations, humble, patient, and calm in everything... Mai's secret to success is not only mastering the basic techniques but also understanding and immersing herself in them to be able to develop her strength, expressing her heart and soul in each movement. In addition to her body and facial muscles, her eyes are the highlight that makes her martial arts moves more attractive.

It is the hard work and secrets that have helped Mai reap many successes. For example, in 2017, Mai won the Silver medal of the first Nghe An Province Traditional Martial Arts Championship Cup and a Bronze medal at the Southern Martial Arts Festival organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Traditional Martial Arts Federation. Notably, at the first International Vietnamese Martial Arts Festival in 2018, which was recently held in Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa), Mai won 2 medals in the optional category, including a Gold medal for the "Lien Hoa Kiem" performance and a Bronze medal for the "Song Tuyet Kiem" performance.

After the international martial arts festival, Mai is currently focusing on training to prepare for the 2nd Nghe An Province Traditional Martial Arts Championship Cup to be held next July. Photo: Phan Giang

Commenting on his student, Master Thich Khai Tri, coach of the Quang Quyen Buddhist sect, said: Mai has the qualities of traditional martial arts. He is diligent in learning, not discouraged by difficult exercises, adheres to the schedule, practices seriously and completes the exercises excellently. If he maintains his form, Mai has great potential to be one of the pillars of the Quang Quyen Buddhist sect in the future.

Phan Giang