At the age of 20, Vu Tra My has won around 40 domestic and international wushu medals. She is among the top wushu artists in Vietnam at present.

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Wushu artist Vu Tra My.

While wushu coaches from the Hanoi Department of Sports and Physical Training were seeking young wushu talent, they discovered Tra My at a kindergarten in Hanoi when she was only four. The little girl began her life as a wushu artist.

At the age of 7, Tra My was sent to China for practice. She traveled from Nanning to Beijing to attend long training courses. Her childhood was different from normal kids, with no time to play and under pressures of training, competitions and awards. She lived far from home and her parents, crying many times with homesickness.

“I was very small at that time. After a day of training, I returned to my room alone without the care of my parents. I felt self-pity. My roommates and I often cried together. But after that, we encouraged each other to try because we had chosen this way,” Tra My recalled.

Her sacrifices have yielded fruit. She won the first medal at the National Wushu Championship 1998. More domestic and international medals came to Tra My after that, including three gold medals at the Asian Young Wushu Championship 2003 in Beijing. At the World Young Wushu Champs 2006 in Malaysia, she won one gold, one silver and one bronze medals. At the age of 17, she took the first Southeast Asian Games gold medal in Thailand.

In normal life, Tra My is a regular young lady, but in the arena, she is dynamic and powerful. Injuries are a daily threats for wushu artists, but Tra My has been very lucky.

She rarely has time to go out with her friends. “In my brief chances to go out with my friends, I often go to rural areas to enjoy cooking and take photos. I feel very peaceful at those time,” Tra My offered.

Tra My cannot remember how many medals that she has won at national wushu championships. Some of her friends on national wushu teams have left the sport, but Tra My is still attached to this martial art.

“I will try to play well at the Asian Games in China this November,” Tra My added.

PV