Historical milestone for Vietnamese athletics team

The Vietnamese track and field team have concluded their SEA Games competition and recorded a new achievement for the country's sport as they dominated the Games’ track and field event.

Le Tu Chinh won a hat-trick of gold medals in the disciplines of 100m and 200m sprint and 4x100m relay.
Le Tu Chinh won a hat-trick of gold medals in the disciplines of 100m and 200m sprint and 4x100m relay.

The athletes won 17 gold medals in Kuala Lumpur, helping the Vietnamese team to take the top honour in the event that has been dominated by Thailand for many years.

Participating in the 29th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, Vietnam’s track and field athletes hoped to gain 11 gold medals - the miracle they produced at the Singapore Games two years ago.

However, their outstanding achievements have exceeded the set target, contributing one third of Vietnam’s gold medal count, as of the end of the seventh official day of competition.

Out of 17 gold medals won by the Vietnamese track and field team, four achievements were far beyond the expectation of the professionals and leaders in the sports sector, including Bui Van Dong’s triumph in the men’s long jump and a hat-trick of gold medals from 20-year-old athlete Le Tu Chinh in the disciplines of 100m and 200m sprint and 4x100m relay.

Tu Chinh and his teammates performed exceptionally to leave the Thai team trailing behind and set a new Games record.

In addition, many other outstanding female athletes also confirmed their position and talents, such as Nguyen Thi Huyen with three gold medals in the women’s 400m, 400m hurdles race and the women’s 4x400m. Yen Hoa claimed the crown in the hurdles race and the women’s 4x100m relay, while Nguyen Thi Oanh finished first place in the women’s 1,500m and 5,000m events.

The Vietnam Athletics Federation has awarded VND1 billion to the Vietnam’s track and field athletes for their highest gold medal achievement in the country’s history at the SEA Games.