Vien announced last week that she had graduated and with honors from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports after four years. She graduated with honors from the Sports Training faculty. She said the move was a stepping stone for her to continue her contribution to the development of Vietnamese swimming in the future.
To focus on her studies, Vien retired from the national swimming team in late 2021. She stopped competing for good at the end of 2022.
In May 2023, Vien attended a sports science conference for university students at Bac Ninh University of Physical Education and Sports in the northern province.
She was awarded first prize by the jury for the excellent presentation of her research on measures to increase interest in swimming for children aged 8-10.
Vien currently teaches and manages her swimming club in Ho Chi Minh City. She also attracted a lot of attention after sharing swimming videos and useful tips on TikTok.
Vien also participates in other social activities, especially programs related to teaching people how to swim, with the aim to reduce the rate of drowning.
Vien got used to wearing makeup and dressing up, the things that she rarely had time for when she was still competing.
Retirement has also given Vien more time for family and personal hobbies.
Sources have revealed that Vien has a boyfriend and will get married in 2024, but she has kept her personal life private.
Even though Vien has retired, she still follows and supports her younger brother Nguyen Quang Thuan, who's also a swimmer. After returning from Asian Games, Thuan performed well at the 2023 national swimming championship, winning two gold medals.
Vien, 26, is the most successful Vietnamese swimmer in history. During 10 years of her professional career, Vien won 25 SEA Games golds, a silver and a bronze in Asian tournaments, two bronze at Asian Games, a Youth Olympic gold and many more. She has dominated domestic swimming in Vietnam for years, holding many accolades and records.
She participated in the Olympics 2016 and 2021 but couldn't make it past the first round in both events.
From 2012-2019, her total investment budget reached over $1.3 million - the most ever for a Vietnamese athlete.
