Vietnam’s women win SEA handball tourne

Vietnam’s women’s team beat their Thai rivals in the final match 35-27 to retain their title at the 2013 Southeast Asia Handball Championships, which took place from Dec. 2-10 in Bangkok , Thailand.

Malaysia came in third.

Meanwhile, in the men’s final match on Dec. 8, Vietnam ’s team lost to Thailand 34-35. The third place belonged to the Philippine team.

Handball is not included in the programme of the 27th South East Asia Games currently underway in Myanmar, so this tournament is considered the most important event of the sport in the region this year.

Vietnam int'l badminton tournament concludes

The Vietnam Grand Prix 2013, an international open badminton tournament, concluded in Ho Chi Minh City on December 8 with some electric final clashes featuring standout performance from players representing the Republic of Korea (RoK).

The tournament’s sixth seed Wan Ho-son of the RoK defeated Malaysia’s Chun Seang Tan 21-14, 21-9 in the men’s singles final.

Chinese player Bing Jiao He only took 21 minutes to finish the women’s singles final against Hera Desi of Indonesia who was seeded second at the competition.

In the men’s doubles final, Fran Kurniawan and Bona Septano from Indonesia grabbed gold medals after beating Chia Yu Lin and Hsiao Lin Wu of Chinese Taiwan 18-21, 21-18 and 21-18.

The RoK’s A Ra Ko and Haewon Yoo held on to record a 2-1 win over Anscelly and Fie Cho Soong of Malaysia in the women’s doubles.

As a World Badminton Federation (BWF) tournament, 237 badminton players from 13 countries and territories competed.-

SEA Games 27: Nay Pyi Taw to increase buses routes

SEA Games 27 host city of Nay Pyi Taw is planning to increase shuttle bus routes serving sport delegations and reporters as more are arriving in the city for the 27th South East Asia Games (SEA Games 27) which will officially open on December 11.

The city currently has only two shuttle bus services, one of which with 14 buses runs from the student village to the press centre, and the other one covers all the competition venues.

According to the organizing committee, the third route will be opened in the next few days with 10 buses operating every competing day.

In the coming days, when more competitions open, the number of shuttle buses as well as bus trips will also increase to match increasing needs, particularly in the morning and late afternoon, the committee said.

The region’s largest sport event will take place from December 11 to 22 with 460 sets of medals at stake. However, some competitions already began on December 1, such as floor ball and Chinlone.

Sports festival kicks off in Hanoi

As many as 8,600 athletes are competing at 28 events of the 8th Sports Festival, which opened in Hanoi on December 8.

Present at the opening ceremony on the evening of December 8 evening were Pham Quang Nghi, Secretary of the Hanoi municipal Party Committee and Ngo Thi Doan Thanh, Chairwoman of the Hanoi municipal People’s Council.

The festival is expected to create a good opportunity for Vietnamese athletes to improve their professional skills and encourage sports and physical training movements among the citizens.

Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, Vice Chairwoman of the Hanoi municipal People’s Committee, who is also Head the organizing board, said the festival has attracted outstanding athletes from 29 precincts and districts of Hanoi.

They include amateurs from schools, companies, agencies, and armed forces who have registered for table tennis, tug-and-war, badminton, Chinese chess, football, and marathon events.

The closing ceremony is scheduled at 9am on December 25.