Vietnamese taekwondo fighters Truong Thi Kim Tuyen and Bac Thi Khiem on May 17 won additional two gold medals for Vietnam in the ongoing 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31).

Accordingly, Tuyen triumphed in the women’s - 46kg Kyorugi event after defeating her Thai rival Chutikan Jongko.

Meanwhile, her teammate Khiem knocked out Indonesia’s Silvana Lamadan with a result of 19-0 in the women’s – 67kg Kyorugi event.

Also on the day, Vietnam’s Ly Hong Phuc grabbed a silver in the men’s -  68kg Kyorugi event, while his teammate Pham Dang Quang won a bronze in the - 58kg Kyorugi event.

One day earlier, the Vietnamese taekwondo team won four gold and one silver medals in the very first day of competition at SEA Games 31.

SEA Games 31: Vietnamese swimmers set record in men's freestyle relay event

The Vietnamese swimming team set a new record at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31), with a time of 7 minutes and 16.31 seconds, winning the gold medal in the men's freestyle 4x200m relay event on on May 17, the 4th day of competition.

Swimmers Nguyen Huu Kim Son, Nguyen Huy Hoang, Hoang Quy Phuoc and Tran Hung Nguyen competed with their rivals from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia in this event.

This is the second time at SEA Games 31, Vietnamese swimmers have defeated Rio 2016 Olympic champion Joseph Schooling of Singapore and his teammates in the relay event.

On the same day, Vietnamese swimmers also brought home two more silver medals in the men’s 200m breaststroke and 100m butterfly events, and one bronze medal in the women’s freestyle 400m competition.  

After the 4th day of  competition, the Vietnamese swimming team pocketed 7 gold, 9 silver and one bronze medal.

At SEA Games 31, the team set a target of wining of from six to eight gold medals.

Myanmar’s women football team awarded 100,000 USD

Myanmar’s Union Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs U Min Thein Zan recently awarded 100,000 USD to female footballers of the country for qualifying for the semi-finals at the ongoing SEA Games 31 in Vietnam.

He praised the brilliant performance of the team, affirming that the Myanmar State and people will look forward to honouring the nation pride through sports and success.

On May 15, Myanmar beat Singapore 1-0 in the last match of Group B with the sole goal by Win Theingi Tun in the fourth minute of the second-half injury time. They earlier trounced Laos 3-0 on May 10.

In the semi-finals, Myanmar will play the hosts Vietnam who topped Group A, while Thailand will face the Philippines. Both fixtures will take place at Cam Pha Stadium of Quang Ninh on May 18.

SEA Games 31: men's, women's doubles bowling titles go to Indonesia, Singapore

Indonesian pair Ryan Leonard Lalisang - Hardy Rachmadian won the gold medal in the men's doubles bowling category with 2,642 points on May 17, the second day of bowling competition in men's and women's doubles events.

The silver and bronze medals went to two pairs of athletes from Singapore.

In the women's doubles category, the pair Cherie Tan Shi Hua - New Hui Fen from Singapore snatched the gold with 2,309 points. The Malaysian and Indonesian bowling teams received silver and bronze medals, respectively.

May 18 will see competitions in 4-men’s teams and 4-women’s teams.

SEA Games 31: Indonesia’s judo aims for four gold medals

Indonesia’ judo team is expected to grab four gold medals at the 31st SEA Games in Vietnam.

The Indonesian Judo Federation sent 16 athletes, including six women, to this year’s regional sports event. At the previous Games in 2019 in the Philippines, the federation sent the same number of athletes.

President of the federation Maruli Simanjuntak expressed his strong belief that the athletes will bring home the best results recorded in the biggest sports competition in Southeast Asia since they took part in previous games.

The federation has meticulously prepared for the 31st SEA Games, he said.

According to Maruli Simanjuntak, the federation has set a target of winning four golds at this Games, however it expects more.

At the 2019 SEA Games in the Philippines, Indonesia's judo team ranked second in the medal tally with four gold, two silver and four bronze medals. 

At the 31st SEA Games, judo competitions are taking place from May 18-22 at the Hoai Duc District Gymnasium, Hanoi. Athletes compete in 13 events, comprising 10 individual, one team, and two Kata categories.

SEA Games 31: Invitation cards run out for women’s football semi-finals

With thousands of fans queuing in front of the Cam Pha city stadium in the northern province of Quang Ninh from early morning on May 18, all invitation cards to the SEA Games 31 women’s football semi-finals have already been handed out.

The matches will take place between Thailand and the Philippines at 3:30pm and between Vietnam and Myanmar at 7pm on the same day.

Following a discussion with the Asian Football Confederation, Quang Ninh planned to distribute 14,500 cards to the semifinals held at the 16,000-seat Cam Pha stadium. More than 4,000 of them were earmarked for distribution at the venue.

At the ongoing SEA Games 31, the women’s football attracts the participation of seven teams divided into Group A (Vietnam, the Philippines, and Cambodia) and Group B (Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, and Singapore).

Cambodia wins first gold in pétanque of SEA Games 31

Chantha Vorng and Vong Sin have won first gold medal for Cambodia in pétanque at the ongoing SEA Games 31 in Vietnam.

They defeated Thach Pha Nara and Nguyen Van Quang of the host in the mixed doubles on May 17.

Head of the Cambodian pétanque team Simnang Kim spoke highly of the Vietnamese athletes as well as preparations of the host country for the sport underway at the Hanoi National Sports Training Centre.

Ly Ngoc Tai, Nguyen Thi Thuy Kieu and Nguyen Thi Thi clinched a bronze for Vietnam in the mixed triples after losing 6-13 to the Thai team, the eventual gold medallists.

Vietnam bagged a silver and bronze in pétanque on May 17, bringing the total to one gold, two silvers and three bronzes after five days of competition.

Pétanque competitions will continue on May 18.

SEA Games 31: Singapore grabs first medal in 400m hurdles event since 1969

Singaporean runner Calvin Quek won a bronze medal in the men’s 400m hurdles race at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) on May 17 – the first medal in for the Singaporean athletics team in the category since 1969.

With a time of 51.19 seconds, Calvin Quek broke his national record.

Calvin’s "breakthrough" achievement at SEA Games 31 is remarkable because when he started working with current coach Luis Cunha in August 2021, his best result was only 53.65 seconds.

After six months of training under the Portuguese coach’s guidance, Calvin set a new national record of Singapore with a time of 51.73 seconds.

Calvin said the achievement is a great honour for him, expressing the hope that his triumph can inspire young athletes to take part in the 400m hurdles competition.
 
The Singaporean athletics team had pocketed one gold, two silver and four bronze medals at the Games by the end of May 17.

SEA Games 31: Linh Na grabs gold for Vietnam in women’s heptathlon

With her excellent performance in heptathlon, Nguyen Linh Na of Vietnam made an impressive comeback on May 17, the second competition day of this sport at SEA Games 31, to pocket a gold medal.

On the previous day, Norliyana Kamarruddin of Malaysia took the lead in the women’s heptathlon with 3,237 points and became a strong contender for the gold. Nguyen Linh Na ranked second with 3,231 points.

Na still followed Kamarruddin in long jump on May 17, leading to an 18-point gap with 3,960 points for the former and 3,978 points for the latter.

However, thanks to her outstanding performance in the last two events, the Vietnamese athlete recorded 41.85 metres in javelin and 2 minutes and 25.35 seconds in the 800-metre run to secure 5,415 points in total, topping the women’s heptathlon.

With not-as-good-as-expected performance in these two events, Norliyana Kamarruddin of Malaysia dropped to the third place with 5,262 points and earned a bronze medal. Sarah Dequiman Noveno of the Philippines moved up to the second position with 5,381 points and won a silver.

The latest gold from Na added up to Vietnam’s 15 gold medals in athletics at SEA Games 31, meeting the target of at least 15 golds in track and field events.

Vietnam athletics team close to gold medal target at SEA Games 31

Runner Nguyen Van Lai was the focus of attention on the third day of athletics competitions at SEA Games 31 after winning the men's 10,000m - his second gold medal at this Games.

Lai and teammate Nguyen Van Thao supported each other effectively to overcome fierce competition from Felisberto De Deus of Timor Leste and Arthit Soda of Thailand.

He was the first to cross the finishing line in a time of 32:17:34, while Thao came third with a time of 32:37:66 to get the bronze.

Lai's first gold was in the men's 5,000m race. 

With Lai’s triumph,  the Vietnamese athletics team have won 16 golds medals at SEA Games 31, almost reaching the target of 15-17 gold medals set before the Games.

SEA Games 31: One more silver for Vietnam in sepak takraw

The women’s sepak takraw team had a 2-0 win over Myanmar on May 17, bringing home another silver medal.

This is the last match of the team in the women’s team regu category. The Vietnamese earlier beat Malaysia and Cambodia but lost to Thailand, thus had to accept silver.

Thailand walked away with gold in the category, and Myanmar got bronze.

In the men’s team regu, the Vietnamese team could not enter the semifinals.

Thailand won gold, while silver went to Malaysia and both Indonesia and the Philippines got the bronze.

The Vietnamese Sepak Takraw players had earlier won a silver and a bronze.

SEA Games 31: wrestling brings six gold medals for Vietnam on first competition day

Vietnam's wrestling team secured six gold medals on the first day of competition at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) at Gia Lam Gymnasium in Hanoi on May 17.

Wrestler Bui Tien Hai defeated his Lao opponent Khamlar Salavong to win gold in the men’s 60kg, while Bui Manh Hung brought home the second gold medal after defeating the Filipino opponent after two rounds in the men’s 67kg.

Nguyen Ba Son knocked out his rival from Indonesia Andika Sulaeman in the men’s 77kg category, while Nghiem Dinh Hieu defeated Thai opponent Chinathurat in the men’s 87kg, winning two more gold medals.

Closing the first day of competition, Nguyen Minh Hieu and Ha Van Hieu bagged more gold medals in the men’s 97kg and 130kg, respectively.

Head coach of the Vietnamese wrestling team Nguyen Van Chuc said that these results are worthy for the team's efforts.

SEA Games 31: Vietnam pockets one more gold medal in athletics

Sprinter Quach Thi Lan set a record of 56:32 in the women's 400m at  SEA Games 31, winning the 14th gold medal for the Vietnamese athletics team.

Lan and her compatriot Nguyen Thi Huyen were up against opponents from Thailand and the Philippine  in the final.

 Huyen bagged a silver medal.

The 18th ASIAD (Asian Athletics Championships) champion confirmed her No.1 position in the region.

SEA Games 31: Philippine newspaper impressed with Vietnamese welcome for Efren Reyes

Efren Reyes got the rock-star treatment on May 16 at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31), where he advanced to the semifinals of the men’s one-cushion carom singles on the same day at Ha Dong Gymnasium in Hanoi, according to a Philippines sports website spin.ph.

An article titled “Efren 'Bata' Reyes gets rock-star treatment in Vietnam” on the website said Reyes beat Thailand’s Suriya Suwannasingh 65-58 and secured at least a bronze medal to the delight of an animated Vietnamese crowd who packed the venue just to see the Filipino pool legend in action.

Reyes, 68,  was later mobbed with by Vietnamese billiards fans outside the venue who wanted a selfie, autograph, or even just to see the billiards legend in the flesh, the article said

Shortly after the match, Reyes' Thai opponent, match officials and even members of the television crew sought selfie moments with the Filipino legend, it added.

In an interview with Vietnamese media, Reyes shared the reason he competes in the men’s one-cushion and three-cushion carom singles at SEA Games 31 even though his forte is the snooker.

Most of the carom players in the Philippines have passed away, while only few young players love the carom category, he said.

Reyes said he highly valued his  Vietnamese opponent Tran Quyet Chien in the upcoming men’s three-cushion carom singles event at SEA Games 31.

During his career, the Filipino legend has won more than 70 international titles and was the first player to win world titles in two different events.

Married couple bring home two more chess golds

Married couple Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son and Pham Le Thao Nguyen enjoyed their second big day by triumphing in the men’s and the women’s individual rapid chess at the ongoing SEA Games 31 almost at the same time on May 17.

Nguyen outlasted Malaysia’s Sim Jia Ru while her husband, grandmaster Son, defeated Megaranto Susanto of Indonesia to enter the finals where they both faced opponents from Singapore.

Nguyen claimed victory over Gong Qianyun just a few minutes before Son’s win over Tin Jingyao, taking two more gold medals for Vietnam at the regional games.

Son has wrapped up his SEA Games 31 journey with two golds. Nguyen will compete in three more events.

The Vietnamese players will vie in the men’s and the women’s team rapid chess on May 18.

Vietnamese archers reach team recurve finals of SEA Games 31

Vietnamese archers on May 17 were qualified for the finals of the men’s and women’s teams recurve at the ongoing SEA Games 31 on home soil.

In the men’s team recurve, Nong Van Linh, Nguyen Duy and Chu Duc Anh took down their Philippine rivals 5-4 and will face defending champions Indonesia in the final.

The Vietnamese women’s team, which is the gold medallist of the previous SEA Games, will face the Philippines in the final after a 6-2 win over Malaysia.

After three days of competition, Vietnamese archers have booked their spots in the finals of four events and five bronze medal matches.

They will compete in the finals of the women’s individual and team compound on May 19.

At SEA Games 30, Vietnam claimed three gold, two silver and one bronze medal in archery. This year, the team targets 2-4 golds across 10 events.

SEA Games 31: Malaysia concerned about medal standings

Concern over Malaysia’s standings on the medal tally chart has grown as the country dropped to sixth place at the end of the ninth day of the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) in Vietnam.

The national contingent has been in the top five spots in the biennial Games, except for the 1983 edition in Singapore, where Malaysia placed sixth.

With today’s meagre haul of three gold medals in pencak silat, gymnastics and athletics, Malaysia currently has 19 golds, 24 silvers and 44 bronzes, and is sixth, having dropped a spot from fifth at the start of the day.

As of May 16, Vietnam obtained 197 medals, including 88 golds, topping the tally and leaving other competitors far behind.

At the second place on the tally was Thailand with 36 gold medals, followed by the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, who secured 30, 24, 23, and 19 gold medals, respectively.

SEA Games 31: Vietnam trounce Malaysia in men’s doubles tennis qualifications

Le Quoc Khanh and Nguyen Van Phuong of Vietnam on May 17 defeated their Malaysian rivals 2-0 in the qualification round of the men’s doubles tennis event at the ongoing SEA Games 31.

Competing against Muhammad Aliman Bin Hamdan and Darrshan Suresh of Malaysia, the pair won both sets for scores of 6-4 and 6-0.

Throughout the day, tennis matches in the women’s singles, men’s doubles, and mixed doubles are scheduled to take place in the northern province of Bac Ninh.

Vietnamese athletes are set to rival those from Thailand, Indonesia, and Cambodia in these events.

SEA Games 31: Vietnam trounce Malaysia in men’s doubles tennis qualifications

Le Quoc Khanh and Nguyen Van Phuong of Vietnam on May 17 defeated their Malaysian rivals 2-0 in the qualification round of the men’s doubles tennis event at the ongoing SEA Games 31.

Competing against Muhammad Aliman Bin Hamdan and Darrshan Suresh of Malaysia, the pair won both sets for scores of 6-4 and 6-0.

Throughout the day, tennis matches in the women’s singles, men’s doubles, and mixed doubles are scheduled to take place in the northern province of Bac Ninh.

Vietnamese athletes are set to rival those from Thailand, Indonesia, and Cambodia in these events.

Malaysia’s mountain cycling squad makes history at SEA Games 31

The national mountain cycling crew of Malaysia made history on May 17 by bagging the country’s first gold medal in the mixed cross-country relay event at the ongoing SEA Games 31.

The event took place in Vietnam’s Hoa Binh northern mountainous province.

In the final, the squad comprising Ahmad Syazrin Awang Ilah, Zulfikri Zulkifli, Nur Assyira Zainal Abidin and Natahsya Soon clocked 1:23:14 to emerge victorious.

The best achievement of the Malaysian team was winning the silver medal in the Games in 2011.

Speaking to the Malaysian national news agency Bernama, team manager Firdaus Arshad described the success as an amazing achievement as the national squad, which was labelled as ‘underdogged’, managed to spring a surprise.

He said the gold medal was also made possible by the strong fighting spirit after Assyira and Natahsya bagged silver and bronze medals respectively in the women’s cross-country event a day earlier.

The success also ended Malaysia’s 11-year medal drought in cycling at the SEA Games.

In the 2011 edition in Indonesia, Masziyaton Mohd Radzi clinched the silver medal in the women’s cross country event, improving her own record of winning bronze at the 2009 SEA Games in Laos.

SEA Games 31: Philippines, Singapore grab golds in bowling

The Philippines and Singapore secured gold medals in the men's and women's singles bowling events at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) on May 16.

Merwin Matheiu Tan of the Philippines won the gold medal with 1,292 points in the men’s singles. The silver and bronze medals went to Yannaphon Larpapharat of Thailand and Ryan Leonard Lalisang of Indonesia.

In the women’s singles, bowler Cherie Tan Shi Hua of Singapore scored 1,236 points to clinch the gold. Sharon A Limansantoso of Indonesia came second and Tan Shi Hua’s teammate New Hui Fen took the bronze.

Twelve athletes from six countries, namely Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines, participated in the bowling competitions.

Despite their efforts, Vietnamese bowlers failed to grab any medal. The women’s event saw Ha Dieu Huong and Nguyen Thi Huyen Thao finishing seventh and ninth, respectively.

SEA Games 31: Vietnamese petanque team win tickets to semi-finals

On the fourth day of competition at the 31st SEA Games, the Vietnamese petanque team continued to achieve success when reaching the semi-finals in both the mixed triple and mixed doubles events. 

The qualifying round in the two events took place on May 16 at the Hanoi Sports Training and Competition Centre.

In the mixed triple, the Vietnam team easily defeated Myanmar 13-2 in the first match and then beat Cambodia 13-10 to top Group B. Myanmar won Cambodia and took the second position.

In Group A, Laos was in the top position following their wins over Thailand and Malaysia, followed by Thailand.

In the mixed doubles, the Vietnamese pair were not in their best conditions and lost to Thailand, Myanmar and Malaysia to come in the fourth position.

The final round of mixed doubles and mixed triples events is taking place on the afternoon of May 17. Vietnam will play Thailand in the mixed triples and Cambodia in the mixed doubles in the semi-finals.

SEA Games 31: Three Vietnamese players enter semi-finals of individual rapid chess

Three Vietnamese players have entered semi-finals of the individual rapid chess competition at SEA Games 31, but grandmaster Le Quang Liem was not among them.

The qualifying matches of games 1 to 5 of the individual rapid chess competition took place at the Quang Ninh Exhibition of Planning and Expo Centre on May 16. Four Vietnamese players competed in the event.

In the women’s category, two players Pham Le Thao Nguyen and Bach Ngoc Thuy Duong each had three wins and two draws, earning 4 points, and ranked 1st and 2nd respectively on the chart.

In the men’s category, Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son had three draws and two wins, with 3.5 points. However, Liem won only two matches, lost in two other and drew one, earning only 2.5 points;

Thus, Thao Nguyen, Thuy Duong, and Truong Son reached the semi-finals.

On May 17, the players will continue with the semi-finals and finals of the individual rapid chess competition.

SEA Games 31: Another gold medal for Vietnam from canoeing

Vietnamese athlete Nguyen Thi Huong has secured one more gold medal at SEA Games 31 for Vietnam after her excellent performance in the women's canoe singles event on May 17.

Surpassing her Thai, Indonesian and Myanmar rivals, Huong completed the race in 5 minutes 0.752 second.

Busting with joy, the Vietnamese athlete hoped her gold will make more people know about the sport and encourage her teammates in their competitions.

As part of the Games, 19 canoeing/kayak events are scheduled for May 17 – 21, with contestants coming from eight regional nations.

Also on May 17, Vietnam came second in the women’s kayak four 1,000m event, with Thailand and Indonesia bagging gold and bronze medals, respectively.

Meanwhile, in the male category, Vietnam failed the qualifications of the canoe double 1,000m and kayak double 1,000m events, but temporarily took the lead after the semi-finals of the kayak singles 1,000m and kayak four 1,000m events.

SEA Games 31: Muong woman brings first gold medal to Vietnamese cycling

Dinh Thi Nhu Quynh, a cyclist from the Muong ethnic minority group, has won the first gold medal for the Vietnamese cycling team at the ongoing 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31).

Quynh finished her race at the cross-country event  on May 16 at a time of 1:18:5, leaving her Malaysian rivals Natahsya Soon and Nuz Assyria behind.

Quynh said the gold medal has significant meaning to her as this is the first time she has competed in her own hometown.

On May 17, in the men and women’s cross-country relay events, the Vietnamese team completed the 20.8km race only 34 seconds after their Malaysian competitors and won a silver medal.

Cycling competitions will continue in northern Hoa Binh province on May 19 with road race events.

SEA Games 31: Singapore, Thailand qualify for semi-finals of table tennis’ mixed doubles

Pairs from Singapore and Thailand exerted their dominance to qualify for semi-finals of table tennis’s mixed doubles at the ongoing SEA Games 31 held in the northern province of Hai Duong.

On May 17, Padasak Tanviriyavechakul and Suthasini Sawettabut of Thailand defeated Dinh Anh Hoang and Nguyen Khoa Dieu Khanh of the host Vietnam 3-0.

Pang Yew En Koen and Wong Xin Ru of Singapore won over Wong Qi Shen and Tee Ai Xin of Malaysia after five sets.

Thailand’s Phakpoom Sanguansin and Orawan Paranang gained a 3-1 comeback win over Vietnam’s Nguyen Duc Tuan and Bui Ngoc Lan.

Another pair of Singapore booked the last spot in the semi-finals, as Chew Zhe Yu Clarence and Zeng Jian beat Choong Javen and Karen Lyne Anak Dick of Malaysia 3-1.

Matches of the Round of 16 in the men’s and women’s singles will take place on May 17 afternoon.  

While in Hai Duong, athletes were able to visit the province’s tourist attractions, relics and craft villages.

SEA Games 31: Men’s, women’s basketball teams of Vietnam win openers

Both the male and female basketball teams (5x5) of Vietnam won their openers at the ongoing 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) on May 16.

Accordingly, Vietnam defeated Singapore with a score of 73-51 in the women’s event.

Meanwhile, the Vietnamese men’s basketball team enjoyed a 87-55 victory over their Cambodian rivals.

Seven countries, namely Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam, are participating in the 5x5 basketball category at SEA Games 31. The teams are competing in a round-robin format, with those in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places winning gold, silver and bronze medals, respectively (without qualifying, semi-final and final rounds).

The competitions will take place until the end of May 22 at Thanh Tri Gymnasium, which is open to all fans.

SEA Games 31: Quang Ninh to offer invitation cards for women’s football semi-finals

Quang Ninh northeastern province on May 18 morning will offer 14,500 invitation cards for the women’s football semi-finals of the ongoing SEA Games 31, a local official has said.

Director of the provincial Department of Culture and Sports Nguyen Manh Ha stated that the move was finalised following a discussion with the Asian Football Confederation.

The Thailand-Philippines fixture will kick off at 3.30pm and the Vietnam-Myanmar game at 7pm on the same day at the 16,000-seat Cam Pha Stadium of the province.

The Culture and Sports Department will be responsible for the distribution of the cards.

The plan for the final must be made on the basis of the results of the semi-finals, Ha added.  

More gold for Vietnam in canoeing event on morning of May 18

Local canoeists Truong Thi Phuong and Nguyen Thi Ngan won another gold medal for the country in the women's canoe doubles 1000-metre event at the ongoing 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) on the morning of May 18.

This marks the 10th gold for the Vietnamese canoeing team at SEA Games 31, with all the gold medals being won by female rowers.

As part of the Games, a total of 19 canoeing and kayak events are scheduled to run between May 17 and May 21, with contestants coming from eight nations throughout the region.

On May 18, local athletes continue competing in shooting, archery, fencing, rowing, karate, swimming, chess, and Chinese chess.

As of 11:30 a.m. on May 18, the nation had won 105 gold, 65 silver, and 64 bronze medals, ranking first in the medal count. Elsewhere, Thailand are in second with 43 golds, 44 silvers, and 62 bronzes, whilst the Philippines come third place with 34 golds, 38 silvers, and 50 bronzes.

Office manager turns Games athlete

Office workers becoming professional athletes is not uncommon throughout the world, but such cases are rare in Việt Nam. That’s why Trịnh Vũ Anh Huy, currently a senior manager of a “Big Four” company in Việt Nam, has drawn so much media attention by competing in the triathlon.

Interested in sports from a young age, Huy used to be a gifted swimmer in HCM City. From 1998 to 2006, he won many awards at national youth swimming tournaments and was also sent abroad for training and represented Việt Nam at Southeast Asian tournaments.

However, he decided to give up pursuing professional sports to focus on studying. He went to Australia to study finance at La Trobe, a top university globally. However, he still retained his passion for sports by regularly training and taking up a part-time job as a swimming and jogging instructor.

After graduating, he returned to Việt Nam to work as an office worker in HCMC and is currently Senior Manager of Consulting Services at PwC Vietnam, one of the top 4 leading auditing firms in Việt Nam.

Despite his busy schedule, the 34-year-old officer still keeps the habit of practising sports, often early in the morning, after his shift and particularly on weekends.

Huy started to take up triathlon seriously in 2018, aiming “to challenge himself and exceed his limitations,” and has competed in several tournaments.

Despite not winning any title in the competition this year, he won the hearts of many Vietnamese fans by spreading the spirit of sport to the office and helping young people see the importance of sports. 

Vietnamese cueist to face Philippine billiard legend in SEA Games 31 semifinals

Vietnamese cueist Nguyen Tran Thanh Tu will face the 67-year-old Philippine billiard legend Efren Reye in the men’s 1-cushion Carom semifinals of the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) in Hanoi on May 18.

Tu won 1-0 against Malaysia’s Muhammad Almie in their quarterfinal match a day prior to seal a berth in the next round.

On May 17, Bui Xuan Vang and Nguyen Bich Tram earned the country two bronze medals in the women’s 9-ball pool. They were outlasted by the Philippines’ Rubilen Amit in first place and Singapore’s Tan Hui Ming in the second.

Lim Kok Leong of Malaysia championed the six-red snooker singles after beating Jefrey Roda from the Philippines 5-3 in the finals. The bronzes went to Moh Keen Hoo from Malaysia and Suchakree Poomjang from Thailand.

Billiard players are competing at Hanoi’s Ha Dong Gymnasium from May 14 – 22 for ten sets of medals, including Men's Pool, Women's Pool, English Billiards, Snooker, 1-cushion Carom and 3-cushion Carom.

The Vietnamese billiard team comprises Tran Quyet Chien, Nguyen Tran Thanh Tu, Huynh Thi Ngoc Huyen, and Bui Xuan Vang.

Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VNN