Thai Son La Girl - The Pride of Vietnamese Taekwondo

Coaches take souvenir photos with Bac Thi Khiem at the 2024 Asian Taekwondo Championship.

Born in 2000, in Xa village, Muong Gion commune, Quynh Nhai district (old), Bac Thi Khiem showed a special love for sports since childhood. Born into a family with a tradition of loving sports , she often participated in local physical activities. However, the big turning point came in 2012, when the Son La Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center organized recruitment in Quynh Nhai district, Khiem boldly registered to participate and was quickly discovered by coach Mui Anh Tuat, who brought her into the provincial Taekwondo team.

A strong, powerful girl, but gentle and modest when talking to us: In the first days of getting acquainted with the new sport, I encountered many difficulties. The high intensity training, complex techniques and consecutive injuries made me want to give up. But thanks to the encouragement of the coach, family and friends, they motivated and empowered me to overcome and gradually mature in a professional training environment.

With the advantage of height of 1m75 and hard work and effort in training, in 2013, Bac Thi Khiem won the Silver Medal at the National Youth Taekwondo Championship. An important milestone, in 2015, Khiem was called up to the national team, opening a period of remarkable development in both physical and technical aspects.

Sharing about the training process in the national team, Khiem said: Every day, I complete a large amount of exercises according to the training plan of the coaching staff and actively research high-level matches, do extra training outside of work hours and maintain a scientific nutritional regimen, ensuring the best physical condition. After matches, I review videos to adjust my movements, improve my performance and limit injuries.

The first success was at the 30th SEA Games (2019) in the Philippines, Khiem excellently won the final match and brought home the first SEA Games Gold Medal in his career. Next was successfully defending the championship at the 31st SEA Games; Gold Medal at the Southeast Asian Championship in 2019, 2022, 2023, 2025; Bronze Medal at the Asian Games (ASIAD-19) in 2023. The highest peak in Khiem's career up to this point is the Gold Medal at the 2024 Asian Taekwondo Championship. This is a historic victory, because Khiem's opponent in the final match was a Korean boxer who won the Gold Medal at the 19th ASIAD and is ranked 7th in the world .

Coach Quang Van Lich, who has been with the Taekwondo team for many years, has always followed Khiem closely since the first days when he joined the team, said: Bac Thi Khiem is one of the athletes who maintains a high sense of discipline and expertise, is precise in her style and training awareness. At the same time, she is very diligent in learning and improving her techniques and tactics, is a very intelligent and brave fighter, has accurate and powerful kicks and the ability to change tactics very quickly. It is these factors that help Khiem win prestigious medals, bringing glory to the Fatherland.

As a national Taekwondo champion from 2015 to present, having won the Asian and Southeast Asian Gold Medals, being good at his profession, always showing good awareness and discipline in training and living, in May 2024, Khiem was honored to be admitted to the Party by the Party Cell of the Son La Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center, a shining example for athletes to follow.

Not resting on her laurels, after successfully conquering Southeast Asia and standing on the pinnacle of Asian glory, Khiem has always remained humble and practiced diligently. Bac Thi Khiem is expected to continue her journey to win a ticket to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, bringing the glory of Vietnamese Taekwondo further to the international arena.

Source: https://baosonla.vn/the-thao/co-gai-thai-son-la-niem-tu-hao-cua-taekwondo-viet-nam-0cP01EqHR.html