Among the world's toughest races

TP - “I set a goal to become the most resilient Vietnamese person in the world. I want to be a better version of myself after conquering new challenges, so that life will be meaningful,” Thanh Vu shared with Tien Phong while on the plane to prepare for the upcoming challenge…

From office girl…

Thanh Vu runs across the Atacama Desert in 2016

In the endurance sports community, Thanh Vu is famous for a series of impressive achievements in extremely difficult races of hundreds of kilometers in the desert, high mountains, or the world's most rigorous triathlon competition. If you look at the super-huge statistics of the challenges, many people will think that Thanh Vu must be a professional athlete.

Thanh Vu (real name Vu Phuong Thanh) was born in 1990 in Hanoi . She studied business administration in Canada and England and then worked as a financial analyst for Bloomberg Singapore, a job at a famous multinational corporation right after graduation that is the dream of many young people.

However, everything was too calm, making this girl from Hanoi feel incomplete. In 2015, Thanh Vu decided to quit her job and seek new challenges to make her life more meaningful.

“When I temporarily put aside the job that everyone thought was good in Singapore, Thanh wanted to truly be herself. The decision to put down such a good job, learn how to live, learn how to become the person I wanted to be was very valuable. Every trade-off has certain risks. Status and fame may not be appreciated by everyone as much as before,” Thanh confided.

“After working for a few years, Thanh felt a bit empty and uncertain even though the promotion was still going well. Thanh wanted to step into the next page of her life differently, stronger and bolder. This precious life cannot be lived for the sake of it. This life should be more interesting and worth living.”

Thanh Vu proudly holds the national flag as the first Vietnamese to participate in the Deca-Triathlon World Championship (Swiss Ultra) and win the championship in 2022.

…To the conquering female warrior

Instead of hanging out with friends, this 9X girl spent a lot of time practicing before embarking on "tortures" outside of Vietnam's borders, where she could accumulate valuable lessons for herself and transmit positive energy to those around her.

In 2016, the girl born in 1990 was the first Southeast Asian woman to cross 4 deserts in the 4 Deserts Grand Slam ultra marathon (including the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Gobi Desert in China, the Namib Desert in Namibia, and the Antarctica cold desert in Antarctica) with a total distance of about 1,000km. This desert journey helped Thanh gain more confidence that an ordinary person can also do extraordinary things. This was the springboard for Thanh Vu to "show off" in various challenges.
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In May 2017, Thanh completed The Track, a 522 km race in Australia spanning 9 stages and 10 days. In September 2017, she participated in the famous Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc 171 km race in France (DNF - did not finish when only 24 km from the finish line). This was also Thanh's first regrettable "failure". This was followed by the Grand to Grand Ultra 273 km long challenge in North America (2018), the Everest Trail Race in Nepal 186 km long (2019) before the Covid pandemic hit.

Thanh Vu completed the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii in 14 hours and 31 minutes.

In 2022, Thanh Vu became the first Vietnamese person to win the world championship in the ultra-long distance triathlon - Deca ultra triathlon (10 times the triathlon event of 3.8km swim - 180km bike - 42.2km run) - at the Swiss Ultra 2022. This "superwoman" completed 38km of swimming, 1,800km of cycling and 422km of running with a total time of 328 hours 27 minutes 55 seconds, equivalent to nearly 14 days! With this impressive achievement, the Vietnam Olympic Committee awarded a certificate of merit to Thanh Vu to encourage and motivate the young girl's spirit of dedication. Thanh represents the new generation of Vietnamese women: independent, self-reliant and strong. Her story has inspired millions of women in Vietnam and around the world.

In March 2024, Thanh completed the challenge of walking 500km on snow over 9 days at the Montane Lapland Arctic Ultra (MLAU).

In October 2024, Thanh reached a new “unimaginable” peak: Triple Deca Continuous in Switzerland. The challenge was equivalent to 30 consecutive Ironman 140.6 competitions with a total of 114 km of swimming (time limit of 96 hours in a 50m pool), 5,400 km of cycling (time limit of 550 hours on a 7km route) and 1,260 km of running (time limit of 550 hours on a 1km route). This is a challenge that not many people in the world dare to participate in. The total distance is 6,810km, nearly 3 times the length of the longest road in Vietnam. Thanh completed it after more than 1,044 hours, becoming the first Asian and one of the few women to complete this challenge. Out of 14 athletes, 6 people dropped out.

Vietnamese spirit on the race track

“I have no special talent, and my coach also said my physical strength is normal. It is my will and determination that helped me achieve my goal. I hope that what I have done will pave the way for other women to continue to conquer challenges and shine,” Thanh confided.

Swimming in the freezing cold water of 15 degrees Celsius in the pool for hours, cycling in the sun, the wind blowing on his face, his sunscreen flying away or in the pouring rain all day long, Thanh Vu cried during the Swiss Ultra 2022 triathlon in Switzerland. Thanh rarely shows tears or weakness in front of people like that.

Thanh Vu completes the 5,400km cycling portion of the Triple Deca Continous challenge in October 2024

Those were certainly not tears of giving up, but an outburst of emotion when this girl's physical strength had reached its limit but her mind still kept urging her to keep going.

In that moment, Thanh thought of her family, of her supporters back home, and of the pride she felt as a Vietnamese woman conquering one of the world’s toughest challenges. Tears mixed with sweat, Thanh Vu tightened her shoelaces, adjusted her swimsuit, climbed back on her bike and continued moving forward.

On the track, Thanh Vu has faced injuries, insomnia, and harsh weather many times. But she believes in the power of perseverance - "every small step today is the foundation for tomorrow's miracle".

What is special about Thanh Vu is not only her personal sports achievements. In every tournament, Thanh carries the national flag, as a reminder of her origin and national pride. During the historic August Revolution and National Day every year, September 2, Thanh Vu is often on a challenging journey somewhere in the world.

“No matter where I am, Thanh is always proud to be Vietnamese. Wherever I go, the Fatherland is always in my heart. Thanh cherishes that sacred moment. Generations of fathers and brothers sacrificed for the freedom and independence of the nation so that Thanh can do what he wants today. Thanh is very grateful.” That is also a great motivation for Thanh not to back down.

Vietnam reaches out to the world Thanh Vu's journey shows us that the starting point does not determine the destination. Dare to dream, dare to try and dare to fail. Because failure is only part of the journey to success. What is important is the will, preparation and belief in one's own abilities. The young girl has proven that success or extraordinary things do not come in a day, but are created from millions of ordinary, persistent steps, one step after the other. For Thanh Vu, each race is not just a physical challenge, but a journey to bring the Vietnamese spirit beyond all limits. That aspiration, once ignited, will continue to burn forever, inspiring many people.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/giua-nhung-cuoc-dua-khac-nghiet-nhat-the-gioi-post1773735.tpo