Martial artist Nguyen Manh Phi: Rising above challenges to become a world gold medalist

After 15 years of undergoing persistent training and competition, and overcoming serious injuries, martial artist Nguyen Manh Phi (Dong Nai Vovinam Team) has achieved the best result in his career with a world gold medal.

Martial artist Nguyen Manh Phi receives the gold medal (on podium 1, right). Photo: M.H

The journey of rising above oneself

Having been introduced to Vovinam, a traditional Vietnamese martial art, by chance, Nguyen Manh Phi never imagined he would remain committed to it for the past 15 years. However, Manh Phi's professional competitive journey has not been smooth, marked by numerous setbacks and challenges.

Nguyen Manh Phi began training in his hometown of Tan Phu at the age of 15, but it was not until he entered the University of Physical Education and Sports that he joined the Dong Nai Vovinam team in 2016, thanks to his achievements in provincial-level tournaments representing the former Tan Phu district. At that time, Manh Phi competed in both sparring and performance categories, winning a silver medal in the basic team technique kata and a bronze medal in the sparring category.

Athletes Nguyen Manh Phi (left) and Nguyen Xuan Hoa train together at the Dong Nai Vovinam Team. Photo: Thuy Tien

Athlete Nguyen Manh Phi (right) and his teammates practice performing a sword routine. Photo: Thuy Tien.

Unfortunately, before contributing much and achieving many accomplishments while representing Dong Nai, the biggest challenge struck when Manh Phi suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left leg during a sparring competition – a nightmare for any athlete.

And the fighter from Dong Nai spent about a year undergoing treatment to recover from his injury and continue pursuing his passion. Manh Phi admitted that it was a very difficult time to regain his peak physical condition. "Thanks to the encouragement of my coach, teammates, and my own efforts, I overcame the difficulties to continue pursuing my passion," Manh Phi shared.

Vovinam fighter Nguyen Manh Phi (standing) delivers a strike during a competition at the 2024 National Championship. Photo: Courtesy of the Dong Nai Vovinam Team.

After recovering from injury, in 2017, Nguyen Manh Phi returned to competition and won a bronze medal in the basic team technique event at the National Championship. In 2018, he and Nguyen Xuan Hoa won a bronze medal in the men's doubles wrestling performance at the National Sports Games. In 2019, the pair continued to win a bronze medal in this event and an additional silver medal in the basic team technique event.

During the 2020-2021 period, Manh Phi faced difficulties competing with a new partner due to Xuan Hoa's injury, and then competitions were temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2022, when Xuan Hoa returned, Manh Phi made his mark with a silver medal in the men's doubles wrestling event at the National Sports Games and won a gold medal at the Southeast Region Vovinam Championship in Binh Duong.

Nguyen Manh Phi (second from right) during the performance of the men's team sword category at the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia. Photo: Courtesy of Nguyen Manh Phi

Continuing his strong performance in 2023, Nguyen Manh Phi was called up for the first time to the Vietnamese Vovinam team to compete in the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia. In his first appearance, Nguyen Manh Phi won his first international medal in his career, in an event that wasn't his specialty, when he and his teammates Huynh Khac Nguyen, Nguyen Hoang Tan, and Le Duc Anh won the silver medal in the men's team sword category (four men) for the Vietnamese sports delegation.

Nguyen Manh Phi with his silver medal in the men's team fencing event at the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia. Photo: Photo: Courtesy of Nguyen Manh Phi

His achievements at the 32nd SEA Games helped the young man from Dong Nai continue to be part of the national team and win a silver medal at the 2023 Southeast Asian Games and a silver medal at the 2023 World Championships in the men's four-person team fencing event.

Two athletes, Nguyen Manh Phi (second from left) and Nguyen Xuan Hoa, stand on the podium receiving the silver medals in the Double Wrestling 2 event at the 2025 National Vovinam Strong Teams Championship. Photo: Courtesy of the organizers

In the following years, Manh Phi and Nguyen Xuan Hoa continued to help Dong Nai Vovinam win silver medals at the national championships in 2024 and 2025.

At the peak of his career, with a world gold medal

After winning a silver medal at the 2023 World Championships and maintaining high performance at national championships in 2025, Vovinam athlete Nguyen Manh Phi from Dong Nai was once again called up to the national Vovinam team to compete at the 8th World Vovinam Championships in 2025, taking place from November 1 to 8 in Indonesia. At the tournament, Manh Phi and his teammates competed in the men's team sword event (4 people).

Vovinam fighter Nguyen Manh Phi from Dong Nai province with his world gold medal. Photo: M.H

At the World Vovinam Championship in Indonesia, Dong Nai Vovinam team also had athlete Thi Lai competing in the 63kg weight class in the sparring category, where she excellently won a gold medal, bringing Dong Nai’s total achievements to two gold medals in the tournament.

Nguyen Manh Phi shared: “I was very surprised to be selected for the national team to compete in this world championship. At the world championship, since I competed in an event different from the one I had usually performed with the Dong Nai team, I had to try harder to train on my own to compensate for my shortcomings compared to my teammates.”

Coach Huynh Minh Hai, with two martial artists, Thi Lai and Nguyen Manh Phi, win the gold medal. Photo: M.H.

Before competing in the World Championships, Nguyen Manh Phi was known as someone "unlucky" with the top podium, as he repeatedly finished with silver medals at a series of major tournaments, from the national championships, SEA Games 32 to the 2023 World Championships. But at the 2025 World Championships, the young athlete from Dong Nai finally fulfilled his long-awaited dream with a gold medal.

Although it wasn't the event he typically competed in with the Dong Nai team, Manh Phi trained diligently, adapted extremely quickly, and excelled in his mission for the nation. He brilliantly changed the color of his medal when, along with his teammates in the Vietnamese Vovinam National Team, he won the prestigious world gold medal in the men's team sword event, specifically the Essence of Two-Sided Sword Technique category.

The 2025 World Championship gold medal is not only the most important achievement in Nguyen Manh Phi's career to date, but also a source of pride for Dong Nai sports and Vietnam.

Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai Province, Vu Thanh Ngu, presents awards to the Vovinam coaches and athletes from Dong Nai who won gold medals at the World Vovinam Championships. Photo: Huy Anh

Nguyen Manh Phi shared: “When I won the gold medal, I felt very happy and proud to have contributed to bringing glory to Vietnamese sports and to Vovinam Dong Nai.”

“The gold medal I just won at the world championships is one of the most important medals in my career since I started practicing Vovinam until now. It is also a motivation for me to strive to pursue my passion and maintain training, and continue to contribute,” Nguyen Manh Phi added.

Vice President of the Dong Nai Provincial Vovinam Federation, Head Coach Dinh Thien Tung (second from right), along with Vu Tien Phat, Head of the High-Performance Sports Training Department, Dong Nai Sports Training and Competition Center, congratulate coach Huynh Minh Hai, Nguyen Manh Phi, and Thi Lai at Tan Son Nhat Airport. Photo: Huy Anh

According to Dinh Thien Tung, Vice President of the Dong Nai Provincial Vovinam Federation and Head Coach of the Dong Nai Vovinam Team: “Thanks to the attention of the Vietnam Department of Sports and Physical Education and the Vietnam Vovinam Federation, the two Dong Nai athletes received thorough training and preparation before their departure, and both achieved gold medals. Besides the goal of achieving high results, the athletes also carried the mission of promoting the image of Dong Nai Vovinam and spreading the spirit of Vietnamese martial arts to international friends. That is the greatest value of having the honor of wearing the national flag and the colors of Vietnamese Vovinam.”

Not resting on his laurels, Nguyen Manh Phi affirmed that he will continue to maintain his training. His immediate goal, along with his teammates, is to achieve the highest possible results at the Strong Teams Cup and the 2026 National Sports Games, contributing to the overall development of Vovinam in Dong Nai province.

Addressing the younger generation, the golden boy of Dong Nai’s Vovinam advised: "Always be enthusiastic and give it your all. If you persevere in pursuing your passion, success will surely come."

By Huy Anh-Thuy Tien – Translated by Quoc Dung, Thu Ha