VietNamNet Bridge – The national gymnastics team of Vietnam has had a new star – overseas Vietnamese gymnast Truong Mai Nhat Linh or Linda Truong.

Linda Truong is less well-known to Vietnamese fans but in the rhythmic gymnastics world, she is a familiar face. Seven years ago, the 10-year-old girl born in Russia returned to Vietnam to compete at the National Gymnastics Championships in Hanoi. At that time, Linda Truong won four championships in Ukraine (from 2003-2006) for athletes of the age of seven to ten.

The 17-year-old girl recently represented Vietnam at the 2013 Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup held from May 17 to 19 in the city of Minsk, Belarus. She is also the only Vietnamese athlete at the tournament, which attracted 200 athletes and 10 groups.

Last year, Linda Truong won three silver medals and one gold medal for Vietnam at a competition in Hungary.

In the past, Vietnam had a group of five talented rhythmic gymnasts in 2003. The group was then disbanded. Only Nguyen Thu Ha, known by the nickname Ha Holly, committed herself with this sport as an athlete and a coach.

After Ha Holly gave up rhythmic gymnastics due to injury, Vietnam did not have successors until Linda Truong returned home.

Rhythmic gymnastics is an activity in which individuals or teams of 5 manipulate one or two pieces of apparatus: clubs, hoop, ball, ribbon, rope and free (no apparatus). An individual athlete only manipulates 1 apparatus at a time. When multiple gymnasts are performing a routine together a maximum of two types of apparatus may be distributed through the group. An athlete can exchange apparatus with a team member at any time through the routine. Therefore, an athlete can manipulate up to two different pieces of apparatus through the duration of the routine.

Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport that combines elements of ballet, gymnastics, dance, and apparatus manipulation. The victor is the participant who earns the most points, determined by a panel of judges, for leaps, balances, pirouettes (pivots), flexibilities, apparatus handling, execution, and artistic effect.

Nam Nguyen