Vinh ranks eighth in World Cup shooting contest

Marksmen Hoang Xuan Vinh ranked eighth in the men's 50m pistol event at the ongoing International Sport Shooting Federation World Cup Rifle-Pistol-Shotgun competition in China.

Wang Zhiwei of China claimed the top spot, while Jin Jongoh of South Korea and China's Pu Qifeng came in second and third, respectively.

Earlier, Ha Minh Thanh placed 12th in the men's 25m rapid fire pistol event.

Liem to lead Vietnamese team at Chess Olympiad

International Grandmaster Le Quang Liem will lead the Vietnamese team at the 2014 Chess Olympiad, which will take place in Tromso, Norway, from August 1 to 14.

Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, Nguyen Duc Hoa, Nguyen Huynh Minh Huy and Nguyen Van Huy will join the team this time.

The reigning world champion, Norwegian Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, will also compete in the event.

Chess Olympiad, one of the world's largest chess events, is valued at almost US$2 million.

Big cash hang for Binh Duong players in V-League

If the thrill of victory isn't enough, Becamex Binh Duong players can also look forward to sharing more than VND5 billion (US$238,000) if they win the V-League title this season, the club managers have announced.

The decision was made after the club jumped to the first position following a big 4-1 win over Hoang Anh Gia Lai on Sunday in their Go Dau Stadium.

The two-time winners now have 39 points, as many as the defending champions Ha Noi T&T who played one match less.

In the last four matches, Binh Duong will play Hung Vuong An Giang and SHB Da Nang on home turf and Quang Nam and Dong Tam Long An on away field.

The winners of the V-League will also enjoy a VND4 billion bonus from the organising board and up to VND1 billion from other sponsors.

HCM City hosts 28th Golden Racket table tennis competition

The 28th Golden Racket International Table Tennis Tournament is scheduled to kick off in HCM City's Phan Dinh Phung Gymnasium on July 17-20, the event's organising board announced yesterday.

Ninety-two players from Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea, Japan and hosts Viet Nam will compete in the men's and women's singles and doubles.

Top Vietnamese players Mai Hoang My Trang, Dinh Quang Linh, Tran Tuan Quynh, Le Tien Dat and Nguyen Thi Viet Linh will be present at the four-day event.

The total prize pool for the event is VND184 million (US$8,700).

National volleyball champs begin

Twenty-two men's and women's teams will take part in the National Volleyball Championships starting today in the southern provinces of Bac Lieu and Binh Duong.

According to the draw, Cao Su Phu Rieng, Lienvietpostbank, VTV Binh Dien Long An, Bai Bang Paper Mill and Hai Duong will be in women's group A, while PVD Thai Binh, Vietinbank, Thanh Hoa, HCM City's Tan Binh and Air Defence-Air Force will be in group B.

Men's group A consists of the Army corps 4, The Cong, HCM City's Maseco, Sanest Khanh Hoa, Long An and Military Zone 9. Group B includes Vinh Long, Duc Long Gia Lai, Ninh Binh, Border Guards, Phu Tho and Military Zone 5.

Men's and women's A group's qualifying round will compete in Binh Duong and men's and women's B group will play in Bac Lieu from today to July 15. The women's final round will be held in Bac Lieu on July 20-23, while the men's final will be held on July 20-21 in Binh Duong.

The event is worth total prize money of VND432 million (US$20,570). The winner will receive VND100 million (US$4,760) and the runner-up will get VND70 million ($3,300).

VN gets 2 wins at U-18 ITF tourney

Only two of 13 Vietnamese registered victories in the first round of the Viet Nam International Tennis Federation's U-18 tournament, in Can Tho City's Sports Complex, yesterday.

Nguyen Mau Vinh Quang beat Rong Reach Cheng of Cambodia 6-1, 6-0 in the opening match of the men's singles category.

His teammate Huynh Minh Hung defeated Ahmad Maulana Bezuri from Indonesia 6-1, 6-1.

In the next round, Quang will play Indonesian Achad Imam Maruf while Hung is to meet Toru Horie of Japan.

Quang will also participate in the men's doubles event which starts today. He will

pair with Steven Harianto Poedji and play against Stefan Kingsley and Coeneill Spaapen in the first match.

Hung and David Marshall Nguyen will face Eikoh Hayashi and Alester Magalit.

In other tennis news, Vietnamese representative Ly Hoang Nam and his partner Congsup Congcar entered the second round of the Thailand F9 Futures' men's doubles yesterday.

Today they will meet the winners of the match between Warit Sornbutnark/Singekrawee Wattanakul and Sasi Kumar Mukund/Mohit Mayur Jayaprakash. 

Vietnam to compete at Asian volleyball championships

Vietnam has placed in Group B of the Asian Women's U19 Volleyball Championship, which begins on July 17 in Chinese Taipei.

Vietnam will compete against China, Kazakhstan and New Zealand.

Eleven teams will compete in a round-robin format in three groups, with the strongest two from each group advancing to the quarter-final round.

The final is set for July 24.

Tien Minh wins US Open first round

Nguyen Tien Minh on July 8 handily defeated Nicholas Robert Henson Waller (USA) 2-0 after only 17 minutes of play in the first round of the 2014 US YONEX Open Badminton Championships.

The Vietnamese top badminton player dominated the two sets with scores of 21-4 and 21-2.

Minh, who is seeded No. 1 in men’s singles at the tournament, will next face off with Indian rival Chetan Anand in the second round.

Other Vietnamese players Nguyen Bao Minh and Le Ngoc Nguyen Nhung also began competing in men’s and women’s singles on July 8.

After gaining victory over Kyle Golding (Canada) 9-21, 21-18, 21-14 in the qualifying round, Bao Minh lost before Ka Long Ng (Hong Kong, China) 8-21 and 9-21 in the first round and couldn’t earn a ticket to the second round.

Le Ngoc Nguyen Nhung was beaten by Bo Rong (USA) 11-21 and 16-21 in the qualifying round and couldn’t enter the first round.