Vietnam surpasses gold medal target at 2022 World Pencak Silat Championship

Vietnam’s Pencak silat team concluded their campaign at the 2022 World Championship in style, finishing in third place overall with a collection of six gold, four silver and 11 bronze medals.

The Vietnamese team take a souvenir trophy for their overall third-place finish at the 2022 World Pencak Silat Championship. (Photo: Webthethao)
The Vietnamese team take a souvenir trophy for their overall third-place finish at the 2022 World Pencak Silat Championship. (Photo: Webthethao)

The tournament, which took place in Melaka, Malaysia from July 26 to 31, drew 81 teams from around the globe to compete in four demonstration (Seni) and 22 combat (Tanding) events across 13 weight classes for men and 11 for women.

Vietnam was represented by a 30-member team, targeting to bag at least five gold medals, the same as what they had achieved in the 2018 championship.

After four days of fierce competition, the Vietnamese fighters excelled beyond expectation, surpassing the set target by one gold medal.

The six Vietnamese gold medalists included Pham Tuan Anh (men’s 70kg), Nguyen Duy Tuyen (men’s 85kg), Le Van Toan (men’s 95kg+), Quang Thi Thu Nghia (women’s 75kg), An Thi Hoa (women’s 80kg), and Hoang Thi Mai Anh (women’s 85kg).

The Vietnamese Pencak silat team. (Photo: Webthethao)

According to head coach Nguyen Van Hung of the national Pencak silat team, this is the best result that the Vietnamese team have obtained at the world championship arena over the past decade.

More importantly, from the tournament, a few promising young athletes have come out and are now ready to become the adjacent generation of the national Pencak silat team in the near future, he said.