Nagoya, 29 Sep 2026 – Vietnam ended a week-long wait for another gold medal at ASIAD 2026 after the women’s doubles sepak takraw team overcame a difficult path to the title, providing a timely boost for the national delegation following a challenging period at the Games.
The women’s doubles event returned to the Asian Games programme this year after a 12-year absence, reviving a discipline in which generations of Vietnamese players have traditionally been competitive whenever it has featured at the continental event. Expectations were particularly high this time, with Thailand not entering the competition and Vietnam identifying the event as one of their clearest opportunities to challenge for gold. However, those expectations also appeared to place considerable pressure on Nguyen Thi Khanh Ly, Nguyen Thi Thu Trang and Le Thi Hong Lien, who suffered a major setback in their opening group-stage match against Laos. Vietnam won the first set but then lost the next two to suffer a surprise defeat, immediately putting their qualification hopes under pressure with highly rated Myanmar and Malaysia still to come.
Rather than allowing the opening defeat to derail their campaign, the Vietnamese trio responded when the pressure was at its highest. They overcame Myanmar following a tense battle before defeating Malaysia to finish second in Group A and advance to the semi-finals. Another demanding challenge awaited against South Korea, a team that has made significant progress following increased investment in recent years. Vietnam repeatedly found themselves behind, while Thu Trang, one of the team’s key players, struggled with a back injury and required medical attention during the contest. Despite those difficulties, Vietnam remained composed and gradually fought their way back before securing a 15-6, 15-13 victory to book a place in the gold-medal match.
Having survived the most difficult stages of their campaign, Khanh Ly, Thu Trang and Hong Lien produced a commanding performance against the Philippines in the final. Vietnam controlled the decisive contest and completed their remarkable turnaround by claiming the gold medal, transforming a campaign that had begun with a shock defeat into one of the delegation’s most memorable successes at ASIAD 2026.
The coaching staff also played an important role in the triumph. Beyond their technical instructions, coaches Hoang Thi Thai Xuan and Tran Thi Vui helped the players manage the psychological pressure they faced throughout the competition, particularly following the opening loss and during the difficult semi-final against South Korea. Both coaches have extensive Asian Games experience and have won medals during their careers as athletes and coaches, with that experience proving valuable in helping the team navigate the most demanding moments of the tournament.
The gold could hardly have arrived at a more important time for the Vietnamese delegation. Before the women’s sepak takraw triumph, Vietnam had gone more than a week without winning a gold medal, while several events considered among the country’s strongest medal opportunities had failed to deliver the expected results. Vietnam delegation head Nguyen Hong Minh acknowledged that the overall performances up to that point had fallen short of expectations, describing the Games as an important reality check that could help Vietnamese sport reassess its position in Asia and make necessary adjustments to its future investment strategy.
Against that backdrop, the women’s doubles sepak takraw gold represents more than another medal on Vietnam’s tally. The determination shown by Khanh Ly, Thu Trang and Hong Lien — recovering from an opening defeat, overcoming strong opponents and dealing with injury problems — has provided a timely morale boost for the rest of the delegation heading into the final days of competition.
Vietnam’s target of winning at least four gold medals at ASIAD 2026 remains a difficult challenge, but the sepak takraw team’s comeback has demonstrated that further breakthroughs are still possible. With several days of competition remaining, Vietnam will hope the momentum generated by its latest champions can inspire other athletes to produce more medal-winning performances before the Games draw to a close.
VSN/RPT
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