VietNamNet Bridge – A national taekwondo tournament for young martial artists will take place from March 17-21 in the central province of Quang Nam.

It is expected to attract 400 athletes from 30 cities and provinces. Top performers will have the opportunity to compete at a regional tournament in HCM City in May.

* Vietnamese swimmers prepare for Singapore meet

A 22-member squad of national athletes will compete in the Southeast Asian Swimming Championship in Singapore this May, team coach Nguyen Dang Ha said.

The group, to include juniors, have been training in Da Nang City since January in preparation for the region's biggest event.

Top swimmers Duong Thi Thom and Le Thi Viet Trinh have managed to sustain their form during training.

"Thom will make every effort to stick to her 50 and 100m backstroke times of 30 seconds and 1min 5sec, respectively," the coach said.

Trinh, 17, will also be a medal contender in the women's 100 and 200m breaststroke divisions.

* Thanh wins open 3rd stage

Cyclist Nguyen Thi Thanh won the third stage of the Binh Duong international women's cycling open yesterday, March 11.

Thanh from Domesco Pharmacy Dong Thap clocked a top speed of 38.442km/h during the 122km stage from Binh Thuan province's La Gi Town to Bien Hoa City. She completed the event in 3hrs, 10min and 25secs.

Nguyen Phan Ngoc Trang of Binh Duong Water Supply-Drainage and Environment and Le Thi Uyen of An Giang Plant Protection 1 finished second and third, respectively.

Although Nguyen Thi Thi of An Giang Plant Protection 2 didn't finish in the top three of this stage, she held on to the yellow jersey (best overall time) with a total time of 10:26.49.

Young cyclist Vo Thi Bich Lam of Domesco Dong Thap youth team finished second with a total time of 10:32.00. Third place went to Thanh, the third stage winner.

Thanh also won the green jersey for scoring the most points with a total of 28 after three stages.

Domesco Dong Thap youth team led the team race with a combined time of 31:12.16, followed by Can Tho City and An Giang Plant Protection.

Today, 70 cyclists from 10 teams coming from Viet Nam and Malaysia compete in the fourth stage, 109km from Bien Hoa City to Tay Ninh Town.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News