{"id":253873,"date":"2026-10-06T13:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T17:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=253873"},"modified":"2026-10-06T13:08:29","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T17:08:29","slug":"national-badminton-champ-thinh-nguyen-finds-joy-in-fast-strategic-play","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2026\/10\/national-badminton-champ-thinh-nguyen-finds-joy-in-fast-strategic-play\/","title":{"rendered":"National Badminton Champ Thinh Nguyen Finds Joy in Fast, Strategic Play"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you want to know how much Thinh \u201cT\u2019\u2019 Nguyen loves badminton, consider that he and a friend spent $200 for an Uber to travel from Stamford to Storrs to try out for UConn\u2019s Badminton Club.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was definitely worth it because I got accepted on Team A my freshman year,\u2019\u2019 said Nguyen, now a junior majoring in data analytics at the Stamford campus.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut after that I learned to use the U-Pass,\u2019\u2019 he said, laughing.<\/p>\n

Last April, Nguyen and his teammates won the Division II National Collegiate Badminton Championship, defeating a team from Harvard. It marked the first time in a decade that the UConn club took home the championship. <\/p>\n

\u2018This Game is My Passion\u2019<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cWhat I love about badminton is how fast and strategic the game is. You have to react quickly, stay focused, and think ahead on every point,\u2019\u2019 Nguyen said. \u201cBeing able to compete at the national level and represent both UConn Stamford and the School of Business made the experience even more meaningful to me.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Becoming a national champion is a source of pride for Nguyen and his team.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a memory I\u2019ll carry with me for a long time,\u201d Nguyen said. \u201cI had competed in two tournaments before and finished fourth both times, so winning this one felt especially meaningful. What made it even more special was knowing that I was able to contribute to UConn\u2019s success and be part of bringing the championship back after 10 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because Nguyen is the only Stamford student on the team, and there is no practice facility in the city, he competes without attending practice. Nevertheless, he is the No. 1 seed among the male players.<\/p>\n

As a child, Nguyen explored a variety of activities, including cheerleading, basketball, soccer, and piano, before eventually finding his passion for badminton.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first time I played on a court in Vietnam, I got three gold medals,\u2019\u2019 he said of his experience in Ho Chi Minh city. \u201cI knew then that badminton was my sport. I enjoy winning. This game is my passion. I\u2019m very competitive.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

The club, which will compete in its first tournament of the semester in Massachusetts in November, doesn\u2019t have a coach, \u201cso we coach each other,\u2019\u2019 Nguyen said.<\/p>\n

New England\u2019s Snow Draws Mixed Reviews <\/h2>\n

Despite being almost 9,000 miles from home, Nguyen said he has adjusted to life in a new country.<\/p>\n

\u201cI actually don\u2019t get homesick very often,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cI know studying in the U.S., and UConn specifically, is a huge opportunity and a significant investment from my family, so I try to focus on making the most of it. I usually go back to Vietnam during longer school breaks when I can.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Adjusting to New England winters took a little bit more time.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Vietnam we have two seasons, hot and hotter,\u2019\u2019 he said, laughing. \u201cThe first winter I spent here was crazy. The first time I saw snow, I was very excited. The second day, when the snow was dirty and the sidewalks were slippery, I didn\u2019t like it quite as much!\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

The educational culture is also very different in the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Vietnam, my experience was more focused on lectures, exams, and correct answers, while here there is more discussion, participation, projects, and interaction with professors,\u2019\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

Data Analytics Offers Better Decisions <\/h2>\n

After he earns his bachelor\u2019s degree in 2028, Nguyen is interested in enrolling in UConn\u2019s master\u2019s degree program in Business Analytics and Project Management (MSBAPM).<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I enjoy about data analytics is the problem-solving side of it. I like starting with a question, looking through the information, and figuring out what is actually happening,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cIt feels rewarding when the answer can help someone understand a situation better or make a better decision.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

In the meantime, Nguyen is gearing up for a new season. The Club has been penalized in the past for not having enough women on the team. Although tryouts have already concluded for this year, Nguyen hopes to see new talent join the team and help continue bringing UConn onto the national stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m looking forward to this season. There\u2019s definitely some pressure after winning last year because defending a championship can be even harder than winning it the first time,\u2019\u2019 Nguyen said. \u201cBut my teammates and I are focused on doing our best and giving everything we have this season!\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

\"A
Thinh \u201cT\u2019\u2019 Nguyen poses with his teammates after the Division II National Collegiate Badminton Championship (contributed photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cIt\u2019s a memory I\u2019ll carry with me for a long time,\u201d Nguyen said. \u201cI had competed in two tournaments before and finished fourth both times, so winning this one felt especially meaningful. What made it even more special was knowing that I was able to contribute to UConn\u2019s success and be part of bringing the championship back after 10 years.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":253874,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1862],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2105],"class_list":["post-253873","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-busn"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-13 17:16:18","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253873","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/121"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253873"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253873\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":253876,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253873\/revisions\/253876"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/253874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253873"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253873"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253873"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=253873"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=253873"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}