sea games 31 vietnam claims historic gold in men s table tennis singles picture 1
Duc Tuan faces Thai rivals Phakpoom Sanguansin in the final match of the men’s singles event at Hai Duong competition hall on the evening of May 20.
The pair receives great encouragement from local supporters in attendance to cheer on the athletes.
The Vietnamese player quickly wins the first set with a score of 11-7.
He continues to dominate the second set, ending with a score of 11-9 in favour of the Vietnamese side.
The Thai athlete changes tactics and is able to defeat Tuan in the third set 11-8.
The Vietnamese competitor converses the fourth set which ends in a score of 11-7 in favour of Duc Tuan.
In the fifth set, the Thai athlete plays well and takes the lead in the opening few minutes.
The Hai Duong-born player patiently chases the set against Thai athlete.
Tuan celebrates victory after equalising to make it 10-10 in the fifth set.
The Vietnamese player trounces Thai rivals Phakpoom Sanguansin 13-11 in the final set to win a gold medal for the nation in the men’s singles.
Tran Tuan Quynh previously won a gold medal at SEA Games 22, with the nation forced to wait 19 years for Duc Tuan to win gold once again for Vietnam.
Most notably, it was Thai athlete Phakpoom Sanguansin who lost to Vietnamese competitor Tran Tuan Quynh 19 years ago and won a silver medal at SEA Games 22.