Historic victory for Vietnam at Davis Cup

Vietnam beat Hong Kong at the Davis Cup‘s BNP Paribas Asia/Oceania Zone Group III on September 15, qualifying for Group II of next year’s event.

In the men’s singles, Hoang Thien lost to Ognian Kolev 1-2. The Vietnamese player was defeated 3-6 in the first set, but fought back to win the second set 6-3.

However, Kolev, with strong international experience, made an easy win in the third set, securing a total victory.

Thien’s loss shouldered the burden on his team mate Minh Tuan in a clash against Philip King.

Tuan played confidently and secured a 6-2 win in the first set. Unexpectedly two minutes into the second set, Phillip quit due to injuries, leaving Tuan with a 2-0 victory.

The men’s doubles pair Quoc Khanh and Minh Quan trounced Li Hei Yin and Lam Siu Chuen 6-1 and 6-3.

This was the first time in history Vietnam has qualified for Davis Cup‘s BNP Paribas Asia/Oceania Zone Group II, meaning it will face strong competition from Thailand, Sri Lanka, Kuwait and Syria.

U19 Vietnam maintain winning streak

Striker Van Toan’s hat-trick earned Vietnam another win over Myanmar on September 16, maintaining their winning streak at the ongoing ASEAN U19 Youth Football Championship in Indonesia.

Myanmar players started the game with a pressing tactic, testing Vietnamese goalie Van Truong. They carved out two to three scoring chances, but tried in vain.

In a lightning attack in the 18th minute, striker Cong Phuong set up the ball for his team mate Van Toan to hammer home, opening the scoring for Vietnam.

HAGL Arsenal JMG striker Van Toan scored his first hat-trick at the tournament

Three minutes before the half-time, Van Toan broke down an offside trap in front of goalie Myo Min Latt and slotted the ball home, extending Vietnam’s lead.

After the interval, Myanmar players made a number of fouls, forcing captain Xuan Truong to leave the field and Van Truong to ask for medical support.

Vietnam’s performance was not so convincing then, making it easier for unmarked Saw Si I to score a goal for Myanmar.

However, Myanmar players’ efforts to equalise the game came to nothing when Van Toan once again broke down another offside trap to complete his first hat-trick of the tournament.

With the four winning games, Vietnam topped Group B and earned a ticket to the semi-finals.

They will have another Group match against underdogs Brunei on September 18.

300 athletes compete for Hanoi table tennis cup

Nearly 300 amateur and professional table tennis players from 60 teams across the country will be competing for the Hanoi Moi (New Hanoi) Newspaper Cup from September 19-22.

They will play in the men’s, women’s and doubles divisions regardless of their age.

National players Dinh Quang Linh, Duong Van Nam, Le Tien Dat, Tran Tuan Quynh, Phan Huy Hoang, Nguyen Ngoc Tu, Pham Thanh Son and Le Tuan Anh, will participate in the professional division.   

Men’s single finals will be broadcast live on Hanoi Television on September 22.

The tournament is sponsored by Vingroup, the Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (Agribank), Vietnam Bank for Industry and Trade (Vietinbank), Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and Xiom Sports.

This is the second time Hanoi Moi Newspaper has organized the table tennis cup to mark the capital city’s 59th Liberation Day (October 10).

Hanoi Moi Editor-in-chief To Quang Phan reveals the tournament has a total prize value of VND110 million, and next year’s event will see the participation of foreign players.

Da Nang teams to take part in national street football tourney

Cong Thanh and Y Lan hotel, both from Da Nang, qualified for the National Street football tournament – the BIDV-Manchester United Cup – which kicks off in Ha Noi on September 22.

Cong Thanh, who beat Y Lan hotel 5-1 in the qualifying round on Sunday, were awarded a cash-prize of VND30 million (US$1,400).

The five-a-side qualifying round drew 64 teams in Da Nang, competing in a knock-out format.

As scheduled, the national street football championships will see eight teams from Da Nang, Ha Noi and HCM City compete in a round-robin format in two groups at Quan Ngua Sports Centre.

U23s all set for Hungary challenges

Viet Nam's Under-23 football team will play three more friendly matches during their training course in Hungary.

The squad will face Reac Sportiskola club tomorrow. Two days later they will face Reac Sportiskola's U-21 team and the third match will soon be confirmed by the Hungarian football federation.

Yesterday, coach Hoang Van Phuc and his team played the first match of their tour against Testveriseg Se club.

After the course, the squad will be back in Viet Nam for the HCM City International Football Tournament which will be run from September 26-30.

The event will feature Santos FC from Brazil and Galatasaray U23s of Turkey.

Viet Nam volleyballers notch 2nd win

Viet Nam beat Indonesia 25-19, 21-25, 25-10, 25-17 in the last group match of the Asian Women's Volleyball Championships in Thailand on Sunday.

The victory, the team's second, earned them second place in Group C with six points and secured their passage to the Classification Round.

In their next group (E), Viet Nam will play Japan, Kazakhstan and the hosts, while in Group F, China will face South Korea, Iran and Chinese Taipei.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals.

Champs face Australia in key encounter

Defending champions Viet Nam will face Australia in the last match of the ASEAN Women's Football Championship's group stage today.

The team need at least one point to ensure a berth in the next round of the annual tournament.

Viet Nam currently sit in second place on seven points in Group A, which is topped by hosts Myanmar, who also have seven points.

Australia lie third with six points.

Speaking after a 4-0 win over Jordan on Sunday, coach Chen Yun Fat said: "Goal difference will be very important. The gap between the top three teams is very close. We will of course try our very best to qualify." .

HCMC seal Beach Volleyball spoils

The National Beach Volleyball Championships 2013 concluded in Hai Phong on Sunday, with HCM City athletes claiming the top spoils.

In the women's pool, the HCM City pair Phan Thi Cam Hong and Mai Thi Hoa won gold, while silver and bronze belonged to the SANA Khanh Hoa's duo Tuyet Ngan – Tran Thi Nhung and Thanh Loan – Tran Thi Trong.

In the men's pool, first place went to Khanh Hoa's pair Trong Quoc – Thanh Nhan. In second position was HCM City's Cao Son – Anh Tuan, while Khanh Hoa's Thanh Vinh – Vinh Long were third.

On the same day in Hai Phong, Ha Noi and HCM City claimed glory at the National Aerobics Championships 2013.

In the U-18 category, Ha Noi won two gold medals, one in the women's singles category courtesy of Thu Ha and one from Quang Anh in the men's singles.

HCM City also took all two golds, one by Bich Thy – Hoai An – Huynh Nhu in the trio category and further glory came from Huynh Nhu – Thanh Thanh – Hong Ngoc – Ky Duyen – Anh Thu in the group-of-five category.

National rowing championships begin

One hundred and three male and female rowers from around the country are competing in the 2013 National Rowing Championships, which officially kicked off in Hanoi on September 15.

The participants represent 13 teams: An Giang, Dak Lak, Da Nang, Hai Duong, Hai Phong, Ha Tinh, Hung Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thai Binh, Thanh Hoa, Vinh Phuc, Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

The rowers are competing for medals in 14 individual and doubles events for both men and women, ranging from 500m-2000m in distance.

The Hanoi team, which topped the 2012 tournament, are the odds-on favourite to grab the championship title this year.

Beach volleyball, aerobics national tournaments draw to close

The 2013 National Beach Volleyball Championships and the 2013 National Aerobic Championship drew to a close on September 15 in the northern coastal province of Hai Phong.

In the women’s team event at the four-day National Beach Volleyball Championships, Phan Thi Cam Hong and Mai Thi Hoa from Ho Chi Minh City won gold, while Tuyet Ngan and Tran Thi Nhung took second and Thanh Loan and Tran Thi Trong were came in third.

In the men’s competition, Khanh Hoa’s Trong Quoc and Thanh Nhan won first, followed by Cao Son and Anh Tuan from Ho Chi Minh City and Thanh Vinh and Vinh Phuc, also from Khanh Hoa.

At the five-day National Aerobic Championships, Thu Ha and Quang Anh from Hanoi bagged the gold medals in the boys’ and girls’ under-18 singles events. The trio of Bich Thy, Hoai An and Huynh Nhu and the five-athlete group of Huynh Nhu, Thanh Thanh, Hong Ngoc, Ky Duyen and Anh Thu from Ho Chi Minh City also won gold medals.

In the 18+ age division, the men’s and women’s singles gold medals went to Viet Anh from Hai Phong and Que Anh from Phu Yen, respectively. The mixed doubles pair of Quoc Toan and Bich Nga from Hanoi and the Ho Chi Minh triples team of Van Sang, Thanh Truc and Kim Chi also took gold.

International table tennis tourney wraps up

The 27th Open Golden Racket International Table Tennis Tournament drew to a close on September 14 after four days of intense competition at the Phan Dinh Phung Gymnasium in Ho Chi Minh City.

Lee Jin Kwon of the Republic of Korea was crowned the men's singles champion following his 4-1 victory over his countryman Kim Bum Soeb, while Vietnamese player Dinh Quang Linh was awarded the bronze medal.

Kato Kyoka of Japan defeated Singapore’s Lin Ye in a fierce 4-3 match to claim the women's singles title.

Earlier, the Japanese team beat Ho Chi Minh City’s Petrosetco with a convincing 3-0 score to take the women’s team championship. The Republic of Korea’s A team trounced the Singaporean team 3-2 in the men’s team final.

The Republic of Korea came out on top at the tournament with two gold, one silver and two bronze medals, while Japan finished second with one gold, one silver and one bronze medal.

The annual event brought together nearly 100 prominent table tennis players from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong (China), Japan, India, Australia and the Republic of Korea.