| Nguyễn Văn Đương | |
| Weight: | |
| Height: | 1.65 m |
| Birth Date: | 1996 10, df=yes[1] |
| Birth Place: | Hoàng Thanh, Vietnam |
| Style: | Orthodox |
Nguyễn Văn Đương (born 2 October 1996) is a Vietnamese amateur boxer. He won a silver medal at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games and later qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Đương was born in the village of Hoàng Thanh in northern Vietnam in 1996.[2] At the age of 13 he accompanied his cousin to Hanoi, where he had been training at the People's Public Security boxing club.[3] [4] Đương was initially rejected because of his weight – he weighed only 32 kg at the time – but was allowed to join after two months of strength training.[4] He competed at his first youth national championships in 2010, winning a gold medal.[4]
In October 2019, Đương knocked out the previously undefeated Jenel Lausa as the main undercard of the Victory 8: Legends of Hoan Kiem event in Hanoi.[5] [6]
Đương won a silver medal in the bantamweight event at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games,[3] defeating Nanthavong Simphavong of Laos and Naing Latt of Myanmar before losing to Thai legend Chatchai-decha Butdee in the final.[7]
Three months later Đương fought in the 2020 Asia & Oceania Olympic Qualification Tournament in Jordan. In his opening bout, he stopped Charlie Senior of Australia.[4] In the quarterfinals, he shocked Chatchai-decha Butdee, beating him in only 47 seconds after scoring two quick knockdowns.[4] Although Đương lost his semifinal matchup against Mohammad Al-Wadi by split decision, his two previous victories secured his spot at the 2020 Summer Olympics,[4] making him the first-ever Vietnamese boxer to earn direct qualification to the competition (as opposed to a wild-card berth).[3]
Đương also won back-to-back national championships in 2019 and 2020.[8] He came in second place in a vote for Vietnam's "most valuable athlete" of 2020, ranked only behind footballer Nguyễn Văn Quyết.[9]