Swimmer Quynh to train using American system

Teenager Ngo Thi Ngoc Quynh will be sent to train in the US in a bid for Viet Nam to compete in the future at world-level swimming tournaments.

The 13-year-old will join Olympian Nguyen Thi Anh Vien at the St Augustine club in Florida, where swimmers train using an advanced training model for elite athletes.

Quynh, from Quang Binh Province, did not win a medal at the recent 27th SEA Games in Myanmar, but she was awarded three titles in breaststroke events at the 2013 ASEAN Age Groups Swimming Championships in Brunei.

Other swimmers, including SEA Games 200m freestyle winner Hoang Quy Phuoc, will fly to China for training, while 1,500m freestyle champion Lam Quang Nhat will head for training in France.

Unseeded Minh to attend Malaysian Open

Nguyen Tien Minh will take part in the Maybank Malaysian Open badminton tournament as an unseeded player.

This is the first time since the Indonesian Open seven months ago he has not been among the eight top seeds of the Badminton World Federation's competition. Minh was dropped to No 10 in December's world rankings.

The Kuala Lumpur tournament, which is recognised as a Super Series Premier event this year, will award up to US$500,000 to winners in five categories, including men's and women's singles and doubles, and mixed doubles.

Minh will play Son Wan-ho, World No 21, in the first round match. The Republic of Korean player defeated Minh in the final of the Chinese Taipei Open last year.

The final of the tournament is scheduled for January 19.

Minh will compete at the Victor Korea Open starting on January 8 and closing on January 12 in Seoul.

Athletes to compete in Myanmar Para Games

A team of 120 Vietnamese athletes will compete at the ASEAN Para Games in Myanmar from January 14-20.

The Vietnamese team will participate in seven of 12 sports and aim to finish in top three, overall.

The Vietnamese competitors with disabilities have been strong in track-and-field, swimming and weightlifting. Among the participants, there are 20 Asian medal holders.

In the last Games in Indonesia in 2011, Vietnam won 43 gold, 42 silver, 62 bronze medals, ranking fourth overall.