Brian Jeffrey
Nguyen Huy Hoang’s presence in the Olympic Games on July 29 was a key focus for the Vietnamese sports delegation. Given the magnitude of the event, expectations for Huy Hoang to clinch a medal or advance to the finals were minimal. The primary aim was for him to outdo his personal best.
Competing in the men’s 800m freestyle, the Vietnamese swimmer took on the first heat in lane number 2. He had a decent start, keeping up with the lead pack. By the 300-meter mark, Huy Hoang was in 5th position, completing the distance in 2 minutes 58.26 seconds.
However, at the 500-meter mark, Huy Hoang fell behind the frontrunner by 5 seconds. As the race progressed, he further dropped back. Ultimately, he finished 5th with a time of 8 minutes 8.39 seconds, nearly 20 seconds behind the winner, Auboeck Felix from Austria (7 minutes 48.49 seconds).
Coming in 5th in the initial heat meant Huy Hoang did not advance to the finals, a foreseeable outcome given the performance disparity between him and his rivals.
However, the disheartening aspect was Huy Hoang’s lower-than-expected performance. For example, he clinched a bronze at the 19th Asian Games with a time of 7 minutes 51.44 seconds. Similarly, at Tokyo 2020 Olympics in the 800m freestyle, he finished in 7 minutes 54.16 seconds. His performance was consistently good in these major events.
Yet, since 2024, Huy Hoang’s form has waned. At the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Qatar, he clocked 8 minutes 5.17 seconds. Although he secured a gold medal at the Southeast Asian Age Group Swimming Championships in the Philippines, his time was over 8 minutes.
Prior to the Olympics, Huy Hoang recorded 8 minutes 9.66 seconds at the World Championships in June. This noticeable decline raises concerns for Vietnam’s top swimmer, considering his career-best time in the 800m freestyle is 7 minutes 49.67 seconds, indicating a significant dip in form of approximately 19 seconds from his peak performance.
At 24, Huy Hoang, while not young, is not deemed old either. His performance slump could be attributed to technical and psychological factors. It is hoped that post the 800m freestyle event, Huy Hoang and his coach will reflect and aim for a better showing in the 1500m freestyle event on August 3.
