Noteworthy Vietnamese-origin London hopefuls

German golden hope
Marcel Nguyen, or Marcel Van Minh Phuc Long Nguyen, became known in German gymnastics at the age of seven, when he was recruited to TSV Unterhaching, a renowned gymnastics club coached by well-known experts Andreas Hirsch and Jens Milbradt.

The Munich-born athlete won the national championship at the double bar category in 2005, when he was only 18 years old. Nguyen, however, only ranked 16th at the world championship that year, a failure that ignited extensive practice that helped him achieve a trophy windfall later.

Marcel Nguyen won the 2007 bronze at the World Championships in Stuttgart. Photo: @Getty

He has since snatched a bronze at the 2007 world championship, and three consecutive golds at the European Championships from 2010 to 2012, held in Birmingham, Berlin, and Montpellier.

Canadian wrestling queen

Born in 1980 in Canada, Carol Huynh has already amassed a huge trophy collection, with a silver medal at the 2001 world championship, a bronze at the 2003 World Cup, and a gold at Beijing 2008, to name a few.

She once thought of giving up professional wrestling after several neck and knee injuries. However, the 32-year-old has exerted effort to practice and regain her form, and her work eventually paid off as she was recruited to the Canadian wrestling team to fight at London 2012.

“I feel very privileged and very excited to be able to represent my country again at the Olympic Games with such outstanding teammates. The last four years since becoming an Olympic Champion have gone by so quickly,” she told Canadian daily Vancouver Sun.

“However, instead of looking at the past, I think it’s important at this point in time to focus on the present to be prepared for the future.”

Though not equal to her strength at Beijing four years ago, Huynh has perfected her tactics and techniques, and is ready to defend her 48kg title.

"There are tons of kids who want to be Carol Huynh when they grow up," Canadian wrestling coach Leigh Vierling was quoted by Reuters as saying.

"She's got that great smile, she's a great spokesperson, she's well educated. As a role model, she fits the bill."

US badminton hope

Howard Bach is not a strange name to many badminton aficionados in Vietnam.
Born in 1979 in Ho Chi Minh City, Bach migrated to the US two years later and took up badminton when he was 16 years old, after moving from San Francisco to Colorado Springs.

Taking a career as a dual player, Bach represented the US at Athens 2004, and advanced to the finale of both double men’s categories at the event.

In 2005 he and Tony Gunawan made history as they beat the duo Candra Wijaya - Sigit Budiarto of Indonesia at the final to bring America their very first world championship.

Bob Malaythong and Howard Bach of the US play against Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng of China during the men's doubles quarterfinal badminton match of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 13, 2008. Cai and Fu won the match 21-9, 21-10. Photo: AFP

As his career peaked, Bach’s performance however began to decline as he incurred repeated losses at major tournaments. He currently focuses mostly on youth training at the California Badminton Academy.

London 2012 will be Bach’s third Olympics, and his last, as he is now 33.

“I’m not young anymore," Bach told NBC Bay Area.

"Badminton is something I'll always continue to love to play but at the same time, there are other areas that I would like to pursue so it's time to open and close a chapter in my life."