Vietnam won gold medal at world youth taekwondo championship

Ho Thi Kim Ngan defeated Costa Rica's Maria Carderon in the 44kg final, helping Vietnam win the gold medal at the world junior tournament for the fourth time in history.

Kim Ngan, born in 2001, is one of the expected medalists at the 2016 World Youth Taekwondo Championship, and is the first Vietnamese athlete to compete on the opening day on November 17.

Kim Ngan (second from right) shines at the moment of receiving the gold medal.

In the first match, the female boxer from An Giang met Tournier Sofia from Argentina. This was a difficult match, but Kim Ngan won the final match with a score of 6-3. In the next match, she created a big surprise when she defeated championship candidate Lee Ye Ji from Korea with a score of 9-2 to enter the quarterfinals. On the excitement, Kim Ngan continued to win 6-4 against Chen Jieh Die from Taiwan, thereby entering the semi-finals with a sure bronze medal. Her opponent in the semi-finals is Valdez Abigial (Philippines). Although she was at a disadvantage at times, Kim Ngan still overcame her opponent with a score of 3-1 to enter the final.

That unexpected success helped Kim Ngan enter the gold medal match with a relaxed mindset, when meeting Calderon Maria (Costa Rica). With reasonable tactics and solid kicks, the Vietnamese girl defeated her opponent with a score of 5-2, thereby winning the first gold medal for Vietnamese taekwondo at this year's world youth tournament.

This is only the fourth time Vietnamese taekwondo has won a gold medal in combat at the world youth tournament. Before Kim Ngan, two other Vietnamese martial artists won glory at this playground: Hoang Ha Giang (2006, 2008) and Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc (2006).

Kim Ngan (red helmet and armor) in the final match against Calderon.

The 2016 World Youth Taekwondo Championship takes place from November 16 to November 20 at Bill Copeland (Canada)with 19 weight classes for the junior age group (14 to 16 years old). This year's tournament is expected to be very difficult with the new competition rules that have just been applied.

Vietnam participated in the tournament with seven officials, one referee and nine athletes (six female athletes). The athletes of the delegation include Hoang Minh Hung (63kg men), Nguyen Minh Thang (51kg men), Pham Dang Quang (55kg men), Ho Thi Kim Ngan (44kg women), Do Thi Hien (46kg women), Vu Thi Dung (52kg women), Bac Thi Khiem (63kg women), Nguyen Thi Kim Tuyen (49kg women), Nguyen Thi Hong Han (55kg women).

After Kim Ngan, the hope of Vietnamese taekwondo will be placed on Pham Dang Quang. This is a young talent highly appreciated by international experts. This athlete won the silver medal at the 2015 World Youth Championships and the bronze medal at the 2016 World Junior Games. At this year's tournament, Pham Dang Quang will meet Birimbay Eldar of Kazakhstan in the first match. Besides, factors such as Nguyen Thi Kim Tuyen and Nguyen Thi Hong Han can create surprises.

According to VNE