Tran Thi Diem Quynh: Good at playing chess, good at studying

(Baonghean) -Among the high-performance sports of Nghe An province, chess was the first to start in 2014 with the participation in the 2014 Central Region Youth Chess and Chinese Chess Tournament held in Thanh Hoa in early February. Among the 6 gold medals won by the Nghe An chess team, female athlete Tran Thi Diem Quynh contributed 1 gold medal in blitz chess. What is special is that this athlete is only 13 years old and also has excellent academic achievements.

Tran Thi Diem Quynh received first prize at the 2014 Central Youth Chess and Chinese Chess Tournament.

The first impression when meeting this young athlete is her chubby, gentle face with bright eyes, fluent and confident way of speaking. Born in 2001 in a family with a tradition of studying, both parents are officials of the Transport sector, Diem Quynh has been very studious since childhood. In the summer of 2008, when she was only 7 years old, Diem Quynh was registered by her father to learn chess at the Vietnam-Germany Children's Cultural House. Here, Quynh quickly revealed her special qualities in this intellectual sport and was selected to join the chess team of the Provincial Sports Training and Coaching Center.

Diem Quynh shared: "Playing chess requires flexible thinking and decisiveness. I don't have any secret, I just diligently absorb what my teacher teaches, valuable experiences from my predecessors, and then learn how to analyze and read the game. I also really like playing chess with many people to train myself to be persistent and brave in facing different situations. When I have free time, I often go online to play chess online, watch news about athletes who have won prizes in international, national and regional competitions. Chess coach Tran Van Son at the Provincial Sports Training and Coaching Center commented: "Diem Quynh is a young athlete with a great passion for chess. During the training process, she tries very hard and has a higher will than her peers. She is very intelligent, persistent and patient. There are training sessions where I can sit for 3 to 4 hours to think about playing a difficult game in the exercise assigned by the coach."

Thanks to her talent, passion and efforts, Diem Quynh's achievements in chess have been increasingly improved. In 2009, when she was in grade 2, Diem Quynh participated in her first major tournament, the Central Youth Chess Open held in Quang Binh. At this tournament, Diem Quynh won 1 gold medal in standard chess and 1 silver medal in blitz chess. Also in that year, Quynh participated in the National Youth Chess Tournament. Although she did not win a medal, this was a useful experience that helped Quynh accumulate a lot of experience competing in major tournaments. A year later, at this tournament, Diem Quynh won 1 silver medal in standard chess and 1 silver medal in rapid chess. In 2013, Quynh won 1 gold medal in blitz chess and 1 bronze medal in team. At the Phu Dong Sports Festivals at the provincial and city levels, Quynh always won first prize; In particular, at the 2012 National Phu Dong Sports Festival held in Can Tho, Diem Quynh won 2 gold medals in both standard and rapid chess, and was voted one of the best athletes of the tournament.

Not only is she an excellent athlete, Diem Quynh is also a diligent and studious student. Currently, Diem Quynh is studying in class 7G - Dang Thai Mai Secondary School (Vinh City). For 6 consecutive years, she has been an excellent student, in the 2009-2010 school year she won third prize in the city-level online Math competition (Violympic).

Currently, Diem Quynh is practicing with the Vinh City chess team to prepare for the Phu Dong Sports Festival Cluster 3 (taking place in Nam Dan), towards the Phu Dong Sports Festival at the provincial level in March and the National Youth Chess Tournament. Diem Quynh shared: "With great encouragement from my family, especially my parents who are always there to encourage, help, create conditions and support my interests and the care and guidance of the coaches of the Provincial Sports Training and Coaching Center, in the future I will continue to try to promote my abilities to maintain the achievements I have achieved and can improve my achievements even higher to become an international chess master". Mr. Tran Thanh Hai - Diem Quynh's father said: "The family respects my interests because chess is also a sport that trains thinking but still wants me to maintain the quality of my cultural studies. If in the future I decide to pursue a career in chess, the family will wholeheartedly support me to satisfy my passion". Knowing that the road ahead is still very long, but with determination, I hope that Diem Quynh will continue to affirm her talent and intelligence, contributing to the overall achievements of the province's sports.

Minh Quan