VietNamNet Bridge – The tips and lessons given by his mother were cherished as priceless gifts by Ly Hoang Nam, 15, the new tennis champion of Vietnam.

15-year-old tennis player overthrows champion Minh Quan

After winning the national men's singles championship at the age of 15 on October 12, Ly Hoang Nam has been widely hailed as a "strange phenomenon" of Vietnam’s tennis. At the age of 15, Nam has shown the maturity, skills, firm stuff and especially the professional behavior.

Nam said the person who made the biggest influence on him is his mother. "In my family, only my mother is an athlete but my father also supports us to pursue the sport career. It was my father who took me to see Mr. Quynh (coach Tran Duc Quynh)," Nam said.

In the memory of coach Tran Duc Quynh, more than six years ago, Ly Hoang Nam was a corpulent boy and he had no sign of a professional tennis player in the future. But being close to Nam, the coach knew that his student was a self-conscious boy, the right style of professional athletes.

At first, because he did not have good shape, Nam had to practice weightlifting. "Until now he still practices gym besides technical, tactical exercises," coach Tran Duc Quynh said. Nam is now over 1.75m tall.

Nam’s parents can not believe that among their three children, Nam is the one who succeeds his mother’s career.

Nam's mother is a table tennis player of Tay Ninh province. She used to be a national master. The mother often told Nam: "Let's play for one point at a time, try in every ball, and never think of victory too soon."

For Nam, his mother's advice is a priceless gift to help him never shrink before difficulties or be afraid of his rivals, even though they are big names.

Nam did not want to talk about his achievements. He did not remember how many championships that he has won. He did not know exactly about his position on the world's rankings for young players.

Coach Tran Duc Quynh said: "The focused attitude, not caring too much about achievement helped Nam get the current achievement. Nam is very young, if he can keep the current manner, he will go very far".

Nam strongly impressed the Hanoi audience at the National Tennis Championship 2012. After every ball, Nam got a round of applause.

An audience member said: "I like most about this boy is his very intelligent style. In many cases, he did not hit too hard but his blows were still difficult and dangerous enough to knock down the rival".

However, coach Tran Duc Quynh said Nam still needs to improve his serving skills. So far, Nam has been only practiced with coach Quynh. Nam’s family is not rich enough to hire a foreign coach for him. The main source of finance comes from Becamex IDC.

Nam said: "If I’m not qualified, I think I cannot comprehend what is taught by foreign trainers." He said that learning from competitors, from his victories and defeats is also a great way to learn.

NLD