Huynh bagged the first gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games for Canada. This is also the first gold medal in free wrestling won by a Canadian athlete at an Olympic Games so far.

The 29-year-old wrestler overwhelmed weighty rivals such as cyclist Catharine Pendrel and swimmer Anamay Pierse to secure the award, which was presented on March 25.

The province’s sports association, Sport British Columbia, praised Carol Huynh’s win, saying her gold medal gave an encouragement for the Canadian athletes to bring home two more golds from the games.

Huynh was born on November 16, 1980, in Hazelton, Canada. Her father is Vietnamese and her mother is Chinese, who settled in Canada in the 1970s.

VietNamNet/VOV