MANILA - There may have been a rare smile on shooter Hoang Xuan Vinh's face on Saturday (Dec 7), but Vietnam's first Olympic champion was hardly satisfied.
Hoang, who won the men's 10m air pistol at the Rio Games in 2016, told The Straits Times in even tones: "On the inside, I'm not smiling."
The 45-year-old had to settle for the SEA Games silver for the second straight edition, despite leading throughout most of the final at the Marine Corps Training Centre in Manila.
He lost his lead after shooting 9.4 in the second-last round, after which he shook his head and sighed as Thailand's Pongpol Kulchairattana edged ahead to take the lead by 0.1 point.
The Thai eventually scored 240.5 to take the gold ahead of Hoang's 239.6. Singapore's Lin Jingxiang finished fifth with his score of 174.6.
"This is my 10th SEA Games, and I think this might be my last," Hoang told ST. When reminded that the 2021 edition would take place in his native Vietnam, he laughed.
"I don't know... we'll see in two years' time. I'll keep training," he said.
On Saturday's final, he rued his lack of focus while praising his opponent's, adding: "Today I wasn't good psychologically... I was okay at the beginning but my last few shots were not good."
The Nov 30-Dec 11 Games capped a "not so good" year for Hoang, who has not succeeded in his attempts to qualify for next year's Olympics yet.
Since making history by becoming the first Vietnamese athlete to win two Olympic medals (he also clinched the 50m pistol silver in Rio), his results have been less than satisfactory.
Hoang did not reach the 10m air pistol final at last year's Asian Games. He also failed to reach the final of the same event at last month's Asian Shooting Championships, which is one of the qualifying events for Tokyo 2020.
Defending his Olympic title is his top priority, as he vowed: "I'll try very hard (to qualify for the Olympics). My scores at the World Cups this year have been low, but I will make some changes to my training style so I get higher scores.
"I have to compete more and improve my focus so I can achieve what I want."
Admitting that he is feeling the pressure, Hoang, who has till May 31 next year to qualify, said: "I need to relax my mind... I want to feel light, enjoy competing and not worry."
This weight of expectation is partly because he feels the younger shooters on the Vietnam team have not fully honed their skills, though he is confident team-mate Bui Thuy Thu Thuy can bag a medal in the women's 10m air pistol on Monday.
Hoang told Vietnamese media: "I believe in her. I'm not sure about gold, but I believe she can win a medal."
Bui, 17, grinned widely and appeared emotional when she heard of Hoang's endorsement. The teenager told ST: "Of course I want a medal for myself, but this means so much as he is a role model."
It now remains to be seen if Hoang can again carve a role for himself at the Olympics.
