Swimmer Nguyen Huy Hoang has become the first Vietnamese athlete to book a slot at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, after meeting the Olympic Qualifying Time (OQT) at the ongoing 18th FINA World Championships.
On Tuesday (July 23) morning, the 2000-born swimmer competed in the men’s 800 m free freestyle and finished in 07:52.74, surpassing the OQT of 7:54.31 for the men’s 800m at the Games announced by the International Swimming Federation (FINA).
Hoang’s best achievement in this event is 07:50.20 when he won gold at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Argentina.
The Quang Binh native will continue to compete in the men’s 1,500 m freestyle on July 27. At the 2018 Asian Games, the 19-year-old won a historic silver medal for Vietnamese swimming in the event, only behind gold medallist Sun Yang of China.
Teenager Hoang finished 15th in the qualification for the men’s 800 m free freestyle at the 2019 FINA World Championships but it was still enough for him to book a ticket to Tokyo 2020.
In addition to Hoang, three additional Vietnamese swimmers were also competing at this year’s World Championships, including Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, Nguyen Huu Kim Son and Le Nguyen Paul.
However, promising swimmer Vien was not at her best as she completed the women’s 400 m freestyle in 4:13.35, only meeting the Olympic Selection Time of 4:15.34, far behind her best personal record of 4:07.96.
In the 200 m individual medley, Vien ranked 26th with 2:17.79 and could not enter the semi-finals. Kim Son ranked 33rd in the men’s 400 m freestyle (3:55.59), while Le Nguyen Paul ranked 46th in the men’s 50m butterfly qualifier.
According to a report on Nhan Dan
