Defending champions Binh Duong plan to offer free tickets

Although they are spending a lot to lure the best national players to their team, Binh Duong are in no hurry to reclaim their money by selling tickets.

General Director Cao Van Chong said that Binh Duong have enough funds to cover all their activities this season without making money from the sale of tickets.

Not just free tickets for fans, the club also plans to give presents to fans who are frequent visitors and are loyal.

After two rounds, Binh Duong are topping the table with six points from two wins.

The all-star team scored 10 goals and will welcome former champions SHB Da Nang this weekend.

40 players nominated for U23 squad consideration

A list of 40 players has been given to national manager Toshyia Miura as a reference for selecting the U23 squad.

Most of the former U19 players who performed outstandingly last year are named in this list. It also includes 16 members of the U23 team who competed at the Incheon Asian Games last October.

Miura will travel around the country to observe players before preparing a shortlist that is expected to be released on February 14.

National cycling cup attracts nearly 60 riders

As many as 59 riders on 12 teams from across the country are competing in the 17th National Men’s Cycling Tournament–Ben Tre Television Cup that commenced in the southern province of Ben Tre on January 12.  

The five-day annual event aims to commemorate the 85th anniversary of the Vietnam Communist Party (February 3, 1930-2015) and the 55th anniversary of Ben Tre Uprising (January 17, 1960-2015).

The cyclists are racing for total prize money of VND250 million in six stages covering 769km through the seven Mekong Delta localities of Ben Tre, Tien Giang, Dong Thap, An Giang, Kien Giang, Can Tho and Vinh Long.

Ha Thanh Tam, from the An Giang Plant Protection team, won the 102km first stage around Ben Tre province on Monday, clocking a time of two hours, 26 minutes and 29 seconds, followed by VTV Can Tho’s Le Van Dong and Tang Tri Hung of ADC–Vinh Long Television.

The 36km second stage – 18 laps around Ben Tre city – took place on the same day, witnessing the victory of Tran Van Quyen from the Military Zone 7 team, whose finishing time was 53 minutes and 26 seconds.

Regarding the team’s category, ADC–Vinh Long Television dominated after the first day of competition with a total time of 9:59:45, followed by Domesco Dong Thap 1 and the Military Zone 7.

The tournament will continue today with the third stage stretching 105km from Ben Tre city to My Tho city (Tien Giang province) and Cao Lanh city (Dong Thap province).

Quyen wins third stage of Ben Tre Television Cycling Tournament

Tran Van Quyen of Military Zone 7 won the third stage of the Ben Tre Television Cycling Tournament yesterday.

Quyen finished the 107km stage from Ben Tre City to Cao Lanh City in 2hr 46.22min.

Le Van Dong of VTV Can Tho came second, followed by Tang Tri Hung of ADC-Vinh Long Television.

Quyen successfully bagged the green jersey for the best rider with 66 points.

The overall ranking, however, did not change.

Ha Thanh Tam of An Giang Plant Protection continues as the leader, with a timing of 6:06.01. Dong and Hung are second and third, respectively.

ADC crew take the lead at the team event with their timing of 18:18.51 after three stages. Military are second, and Domesco Dong Thap are at the third position.

Today, the cyclists will travel from Long Xuyen to Ha Tien Town, a run of 147km.

The annual tournament, that was kicked off on Monday, will see riders competing in six stages for individual and team titles.

The winners will walk away with nearly VND250 million (US$11,700) on Friday.