Vietnamese amateur swimmer conquers 60.6km overnight river challenge

Before taking on the 60.6km challenge, Quang and fellow swimmer Nguyen Ngoc Khanh made history in November 2020 by becoming the first Vietnamese amateur swimmers to complete a 200km river swim from Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi to the Ba Lat estuary in the former Thai Binh Province over three consecutive days.

Swimming as a way of life

Quang is currently a swimming instructor at a well-known international school in Hanoi. 

He said his passion for sports, including swimming, began when he was still at school.

Driven by his love of sports and desire for an independent life, Quang enrolled at Bac Ninh University of Physical Education and Sports after high school, majoring in swimming.

For Quang, getting into the water is a gift.

“I spend an average of two to three hours training every day, including swimming, gym workouts and running. I eat a healthy diet and take some vitamins to improve my fitness,” he said.

His main job is teaching swimming to students at the school. In his free time, he takes on swimming-related jobs, supports the swimming community and participates in extreme sports.

“When I get into the water, I feel completely relaxed, as if I am flying. The water feels like it protects, embraces and surrounds me. Swimming makes all the fatigue of everyday life disappear,” he said.

Quang’s transition to long-distance swimming came in 2019-20, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

With gyms, indoor swimming pools and running on the streets restricted, he turned to rivers and outdoor swimming.

His first major challenge was a solo 50km swim in the Red River.

Knowing of Quang’s swimming ability, Nguyen Ngoc Khanh invited him in November 2020 to join a 200km swimming journey from Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi to the Ba Lat estuary over three days.

More than 20 people took part, but only Quang and Khanh completed the entire route.

The feat made waves in Vietnam’s amateur long-distance swimming community, as no Vietnamese swimmer had previously been known to have completed such a distance.

Swimming 10km with hands cuffed

On July 1, 2023, Quang took on another extraordinary challenge: swimming 10km in the Red River with his hands cuffed.

Before attempting the river swim, he had spent a long time training under similar conditions in an indoor pool.

Khanh and nearly 10 other members of the Red River Swimming Club joined him for the challenge.

Despite having his hands cuffed, Quang swam continuously for more than three hours and completed the 10km course without holding onto a flotation device even once.

Other swimmers stayed alongside him to warn him of passing boats, help ensure his safety and record photos and videos throughout the journey.

To date, no other amateur swimmer in Vietnam has undertaken such an extreme challenge.

After finishing, Quang and the support team urged others not to attempt it. Swimming in a river with one’s hands cuffed requires extensive training, specialized skills and adequate safety support.

On July 6, 2024, Quang took a night bus from Hanoi to Hoa Binh.

At 1:00 am, he began swimming from the Da River near the Hoa Binh hydropower plant toward the Red River and Hanoi.

This time, he took on the challenge entirely alone, without teammates accompanying or supporting him.

He swam 60.6km in 10 hours and 36 minutes, finishing around noon the following day under intense sunshine.

Throughout the more than 10-hour journey, he consumed just one can of energy drink and five cakes to replenish his energy.

The time and distance recorded by his watch once again stunned the swimming community.

“I have many plans. Whenever the weather is good and I have time, I set off on a swimming challenge. If I am lucky enough to have someone accompany me, that is great. Otherwise, I do it alone,” Quang said.

“I have never considered the finish line to be the goal. The journey gives me an incredible feeling of discovering myself, conquering nature and overcoming obstacles along the way.”

Recalling his overnight swim on the Da River, Quang said he was exhausted when dawn broke and he briefly stopped on the riverbank to refuel.

“But the sunrise was spectacular, and the scenery along both sides of the river was indescribably beautiful. So after eating some cakes and drinking water, I continued swimming and stopped only after I had passed 60km,” he said.

Over the years, Quang has taken on many other challenges on his own. Swimming 30-50km is almost routine for him.

He records each long-distance swim on his watch and popular fitness apps, allowing the swimming community to follow his achievements.

Most recently, on the night of August 24, Quang took a bus from Hanoi to Tuyen Quang Province for another solo overnight swim, this time from the Lo River in Tuyen Quang to the Red River in Hanoi.

He had planned to swim about 104km.

However, he eventually stopped after covering 40.4km in nine hours and 48 minutes. He called off the attempt early because northern Vietnam was being affected by Typhoon No. 4, with flooding in many areas causing river levels to rise and waves to become too large for the swim to be safe.

Passion for extreme sports

Quang’s friends and followers on Facebook are familiar with his adventures as an extreme sports enthusiast.

Quang is a member of the Hanoi Caving Club and regularly explores caves across Vietnam with friends.

He has climbed high mountains and tackled challenging waterfalls. Photos of Quang and his friends climbing mountains and hanging hammocks to sleep halfway up sheer cliffs in Ha Giang, Lang Son and Da Lat have left many people stunned.

At times, he and his friends have also climbed huge old trees, then hung hammocks and lived in the trees for one or two days.

Quang has also completed numerous marathon races over the standard 42.195km distance.

Khanh, one of Vietnam’s leading amateur endurance swimmers, said Quang had an advantage because he had received sports training and been involved in sports from an early age and had exceptional physical fitness.

More importantly, Khanh said, Quang had an intense passion for extreme sports.

“Before taking up long-distance swimming, Quang was already among Vietnam’s more accomplished extreme sports enthusiasts,” Khanh said.

“Knowing what he was capable of, I invited him in 2020 to join the 200km project from Long Bien Bridge to the sea in Thai Binh.

Achieving what Quang has done requires years of training and building physical endurance. It takes tremendous passion and a very high level of discipline.”

Nguyen Dat, a triathlete who has completed a 100km run, is also familiar with Quang’s extraordinary swimming feats.

“Minh Quang is an ‘oddball’ in Vietnam’s amateur swimming community,” Dat said.

“If the marathon distance in running is 42.195km, then 10km is considered a marathon in swimming. Swimming 10km is no less difficult than running a marathon.”

Vietnam has seen several long-distance challenges among amateur swimmers, including swims from the mainland to Ly Son Island covering about 27km, a 20km sea swim in Phu Quoc and a 100km swim over two days.

However, most swims longer than 30km have taken place in swimming pools or with companions.

“Quang’s solo 60km overnight river swim was unprecedented. Swimming in open water such as rivers, lakes and the sea is particularly challenging and carries many risks. It requires exceptional physical fitness, strong mental resilience and highly developed skills that very few people possess,” Dat said.

Quang is not a professional athlete, but his swimming ability has earned widespread admiration.

His achievements also demonstrate that Vietnam has people capable of accomplishing extraordinary feats, Dat said, adding that Quang could inspire people, particularly children, to learn swimming as a vital drowning-prevention and survival skill.

Dreaming of 80km swim from Con Dao to mainland

Quang said one of his biggest dreams is to complete an approximately 80km swim from Con Dao, now a special zone administered by Ho Chi Minh City, to the mainland.

“Vietnamese revolutionaries were imprisoned in Con Dao, a place that bears the historical legacy of the resilience and indomitable spirit of Vietnamese patriots who longed for independence and freedom,” he said.

“Many revolutionaries escaped from prison on Con Dao and swam toward the mainland across the vast and dangerous sea.”

“If I could swim from Con Dao to the mainland, I would feel as if I were recreating a heroic chapter of history involving those revolutionaries. I believe I have the physical fitness, skills and determination to swim 80km in the sea.”

“However, obtaining permission for the swim, covering the costs and assembling a support team are major obstacles, so I have not been able to do it yet.”