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Trần Thị Thanh Thúy

Vietnamese volleyball player (born 1997) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Trần Thị Thanh Thúy
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In this Vietnamese name, the surname is Trần. In accordance with Vietnamese custom, this person should be referred to by the given name, Thúy (simply) or Thanh Thúy (politely).

Trần Thị Thanh Thúy (born November 12, 1997), is a Vietnamese female volleyball player and a member of the Vietnam women’s national volleyball team since 2014. She is currently the captain of Vietnam women's national volleyball team.[1][2]

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Early life

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Although her family is originally from Hà Nam, Thanh Thúy was born and raised in Bình Dương.[3] Her father worked in the transportation sector, while her mother was a teacher.[4] When she was 12, despite never having played volleyball before, she had developed a passion for the sport and often followed matches closely, attending games.[5] Her tall height at the time of 1.78 meters (5’10) quickly caught the attention of women's club VTV Bình Điền Long An.[6][7] Because she was so much taller than other players her age, the club’s coaching staff even had to verify through multiple sources to confirm that she was indeed only 12 years old.[8] Former head coach Lương Khương Thượng personally visited her home to persuade her family to let her learn and play volleyball. However, her parents initially refused, preferring that she focus on academics and believing that a career in sports would be both demanding and uncertain.[9]

After many attempts at persuasion, Thanh Thúy’s family finally agreed to let her train volleyball, and she joined the youth team of Bình Điền Long An, which is considered one of the leading volleyball training centers in Vietnam.[10] When she first tried out for the youth team, some of her teammates suspected that she was lying about her age due to her height.[11]

Many of my teammates all thought I was lying about my age, which made me feel very embarrassed. At the time, I cried a lot, but thanks to the encouragement of my coaches and teachers, I was able to overcome that first challenge.

— Trần Thị Thanh Thúy

At the youth team, coach Lương Khương Thượng designed a personalized training program specifically for her.[12] She spent three years training, honing her skills, and gaining competitive experience with the youth squad.[13]

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Career

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2013-2015: Early Years

During the period when outside hitter Kim Đính was sidelined with an injury, Thanh Thúy was promoted from the youth team to the senior team to take part in the 2013 VTV Bình Điền Cup, even though she had not yet turned 16. Veteran player and former captain Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hoa praised her, along with Lê Thanh Thúy, as two standout faces of the tournament who "would take the Vietnam women’s volleyball scene by storm."[14]

In early 2014, Trần Thị Thanh Thúy was officially moved up to the senior team. She became a key player in helping the club win the runner-up position at the Volleyball Vietnam League, and also participated in the 2014 VTV Cup as a strategic substitute.[15] By 2015, she had grown to a height of 1.90 meters (6ft2).[16] That year, she continued competing with VTV Bình Điền Long An, earned the title of Promising Young Player at the 2015 VTV Bình Điền Cup, and won the Hùng Vương Cup.[17]

On the national team level, she represented Vietnam at the 2015 Asian Women's Volleyball Championship, the 2015 SEA Games, and the 2015 VTV International Women's Volleyball Cup.[18]

2016–2017: Rising Star at the National Championships in Thailand and Vietnam

On January 4, 2016, Thanh Thúy signed with the Thailand, Bangkok Glass Volleyball Club that had just won the AVC Women's Volleyball Champions League. She competed in the second leg of the season and helped the team successfully defend their title at the 2015–16 Women's Volleyball Thailand League.[19][20] That same year, she was offered a four-year scholarship to study at Oregon State University in the United States but was unable to go due to her ongoing playing commitments.[21] Later in 2016, she took part in the 2016 VTV International Women's Volleyball Cup where she earned the award for Best Outside Hitter.[22] Toward the end of 2016, Thanh Thúy struggled with her performance in the second round of the Vietnam League and declined Bangkok Glass’s invitation to return for the 2016–17 Women's Volleyball Thailand League.[23]

In 2017, she represented both her club VTV Bình Điền Long An in the 2017 Vietnam League and the VTV9 Bình Điền Cup and the Vietnam national team at the 2017 VTV Cup, 2017 Asian Women's Volleyball Championship, Asian Women's U23 Volleyball Championship, and the 2017 SEA Games.[24] She was named Best Outside Hitter at both the VTV Cup and the Asian Women's U23 Volleyball Championship, and capped off the year by helping VTV Bình Điền Long An win the Vietnam National Championship.[25][26]

2017–2019: Competing in Taiwan and Vietnam

In the 2017–2018 season, Thanh Thúy joined the Taiwanese club Attack Line, becoming the first Vietnamese volleyball player to play for a club outside Southeast Asia.[27] She quickly established herself as the team’s leading outside hitter, scoring herself 147 points in just 8 matches.[28] In 2018, she returned to VTV Bình Điền Long An to compete in the 2018 Vietnam League, helping the club successfully defend their national title.[29] With the national team, she also took part in the 2018 VTV International Women's Volleyball Cup,[30] 2018 Asian Games[31], and the Asian Cup.[32][33]

After the conclusion of the 2018 Vietnam League, Thanh Thúy went back to Taiwan to continue playing for Attack Line.[34] In the 2018–2019 Top Volleyball League she appeared in another 8 matches and scored 158 points.[35] At the 2019 Asian Women's U23 Volleyball Championship, she was named Best Outside Hitter and helped Vietnam secure a third-place finish.[36] However, at the 2019 ASEAN Grand Prix (first leg), Thanh Thúy and her teammates struggled, losing all three matches and finishing fourth out of four teams.[37]

2019–2024: Competing in Japan

In the 2019–2020 season, Thanh Thúy joined the Japanese women’s volleyball club Denso Airybees.[38] During that season, however, she had limited playing time.[39] Although Denso Airybees offered her a contract extension[40], she decided to return to Vietnam and competed in the 2020 Vietnam League[41]. In the first half of 2021, she helped VTV Bình Điền Long An win the Hoa Lư Cup[42], finishing second in Group B of the first round of the 2021 Vietnam League[43], and won the 2021 Hùng Vương Cup.[44]

In June 2021, another Japanese club, the PFU BlueCats, reached an agreement with VTV Bình Điền Long An to sign Thanh Thúy. She played for PFU Blue Cats for three seasons (2021–2024).[45] While she appeared in many matches, she was often used as a middle blocker, which was not her preferred outside hitter position.[46]

Between 2022 and 2023, she also had several call-ups to the national team for major tournaments. In 2022, she competed at the 2021 SEA Games[47], the 2022 Asian Women's Volleyball Cup, and the 2022 ASEAN Grand Prix.[48][49] In 2023, she represented Vietnam at the 2023 AVC Women's Challenge Cup,[50] the 2022 Asian Games[51], the 2023 Asian Women's Club Volleyball Championship, the FIVB Women’s Club World Championship, and the FIVB Challenger Cup.[52] At both the Asian Challenge Cup and the Asian Club Championship, Thanh Thúy earned two individual awards: Most Valuable Player (MVP) and Best Outside Hitter. She also helped Vietnam secure the championship title at the Asian Challenge Cup.[53][54]

In early 2024, while playing in Japan, she suffered a knee injury. Wanting to return to competition quickly, she resumed training before fully recovering, which led to multiple recurrences of the injury.[55] By April 2024, her contract with PFU Blue Cats had expired, and she returned to Vietnam to take part in the 2024 VTV9 – Binh Dien International Women's Volleyball Cup.[56][57] The following month, she was named in the squad for the 2024 AVC Women's Challenge Cup, but did not play in any matches due to her lingering knee injury. After Vietnam won the tournament and qualified for the 2024 FIVB Women's Volleyball Challenger Cup, Thanh Thúy returned to Ho Chi Minh City for treatment before rejoining the national team, where she was officially registered on the roster for the competition.[58]

2024–2025: prolonged Injuries affecting performance

In April 2024, the Turkish women’s volleyball club Kuzeyboru announced that they had signed Thanh Thúy.[59] However, due to the lingering effects of the knee injury she suffered earlier in the year, it prevented her from reaching peak form, and she saw very limited playing time with the team. Six months later in November 2024, Kuzeyboru officially announced the termination of her contract.[60] Upon returning to Vietnam, Thanh Thúy stated that she had recovered from her injury and expressed her desire to continue her career abroad in another Asian league. In December 2024, the national team captain announced that she had reached an agreement to join Gresik Petrokimia Pupuk Indonesia, a club competing in the Indonesian National League, with plans to begin playing in January 2025.[61] However, after only about a month of competition in Indonesia, Gresik Petrokimia Pupuk unexpectedly announced the end of her contract.[62] Thanh Thúy returned to Vietnam on January 31, 2025, where she celebrated Tết (Vietnamese New Year) with her family.

Following that, she rejoined VTV Bình Điền Long An, training and competing with the club in the early months of 2025 in tournaments such as the Hoa Lư Cup, the National Championship, the Hùng Vương Cup, and the 2025 AVC Women's Volleyball Champions League.[63]

2025: Comeback after injury - present

Returning to compete for her home club, VTV Bình Điền Long An, Thanh Thúy continued to be the team’s main scorer and a solid source of motivation for her teammates. Although VTV Bình Điền Long An’s performance didn’t quite meet expectations (3rd place at the Hoa Lư Cup, 3rd place at the Hùng Vương Cup, and 2nd place in the first phase of the National Championship), Thanh Thúy’s individual performances received high praise. In several matches, she scored as many as 38 to 44 points, marking a powerful comeback for the captain of the national women’s volleyball team.[64][65] In April 2025, Thanh Thúy and her club participated in the AVC Women's Volleyball Champions League in the Philippines. As the captain of both her club and the national team, she delivered a series of impressive performances throughout the tournament, helping VTV Bình Điền Long An secure the runner-up position and a spot in the FIVB Women's Volleyball Club World Championship. Thanh Thúy scored a total of 95 points, ranking third among the tournament’s top scorers, and led the rankings for best first-ball receivers. In most matches, coach Thái Quang Lai placed her as an opposite hitter instead of her usual position as an outside hitter. At the end of the tournament, Thanh Thúy was named Best Opposite Hitter and selected for the tournament’s All-Star Team. After the AVC Champions League, Thanh Thúy rejoined the national team for upcoming international competitions. Having made limited contributions in 2024 due to injury, she made an impressive comeback in national colors. Alongside her younger teammate Nguyễn Thị Bích Tuyền, she was one of the team's two main scorers, playing a key role in helping Vietnam win their third consecutive title at the 2025 AVC Women's Volleyball Nations Cup. At the awards ceremony, the national team captain was named Best Outside Hitter and included in the tournament’s All-Star Team.[66][67][68]

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Assessment

Thanks to her exceptional height, she is nicknamed the "dinosaur" of Vietnamese women's volleyball. In 2017, veteran volleyball journalist Nguyễn Lưu, writing for Nhân Dân newspaper, noted that while Thanh Thúy had physical advantages and a modern playing style, she had yet to develop top-tier jumping and blocking abilities. The article also cited experts who viewed Trần Thị Thanh Thúy as the most modern outside hitter in Vietnamese women's volleyball at the time, with back-row attacking capabilities and rare hitting techniques. In 2020, Thanh Niên newspaper quoted Thailand's SMMSport, which recognized Thúy as the key attacker for Bangkok Glass and ranked her among the top 7 foreign players in the Thai volleyball league. Lao Động newspaper called her the number one star of Vietnamese women's volleyball, while Công An Nhân Dân newspaper regarded her as the most successful overseas athlete in Vietnamese sports.

Clubs played in

Achievements

National team

Senior team

U23 team

Clubs

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Awards

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References

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