VietNamNet Bridge – Nguyen Thi Huyen and Nguyen Thi Bich Tram of Viet Nam set new records at the third annual ASEAN Schools Games, held at the Max Pavilion Stadium in Singapore on Saturday.

Huyen sprinted to win the girls' 400m with a time of 56.24 seconds to win the gold medal, breaking her own record of 56.36 from last year's Games in Malaysia.

Her teammate Hdin Nie finished third in this event following Kanjana Boonrung of Thailand.

Meanwhile, Tram triumphed in the girls' 1,500m event, clocking in at 4:46.34 – 0,43sec faster than the old record-holder Afriana Paijo from Indonesia.

Nguyen Thi Hai, also from Viet Nam, won the silver with a time of 4:49.68, ahead of Ranjitha Raja of Singapore who finished with 4:52.12.

Viet Nam also won a gold medal in the boys' 1,500m thanks to Ngo Dang Thanh, who completed his run in 4:02.36.

The Vietnamese school athletes later pocketed three more silvers and two bronzes in various track and field events.

Dang Thi Thu Suong sailed 5.63m in the girls' long jump to take her silver, 36cm short of gold medalist Nor Shahidatun Nadia Binti Mohamad of Malaysia, who set a new record.

Nguyen Thi Quynh flew 1.66m in the girls' high jump and also earned a silver medal, as did Hoang Thi Trinh in the girls' 3,000m walk with a time of 15:03.87. Trinh was unable to repeat her time of 14:29.75, which became the record last year. Her teammate Nguyen Thi My Chi was third in this event, clocking in at 22:17.75, while Elena Goh Ling Yin of Malaysia won the gold medal after only 14:34.75.

The 147-member Vietnamese delegation competed in six out of 12 events: swimming, table tennis, basketball, track and field, gymnastics and tennis.

Vietnamese students are traditionally strongest in track and field, gymnastics, table tennis and tennis.

The delegation was led by Le Manh Hung, the deputy head of the Students' Affairs Department under the Ministry of Education and Training.

At the Malaysian Games, Viet Nam finished fourth grabbing 11 gold, seven silver and 16 bronze medals.

Host Malaysia topped the medal tally with 45 golds, 37 silvers and 24 bronzes, followed by Thailand and Indonesia.

The Singapore's week-long event, which commenced on Friday, offers a chance for students to improve their physical and spiritual lives and engage with regional friends, said Singapore's Minister of Education Heng Sweakeat in his opening remarks.

In conjunction with the Singapore Youth Festival 2011, which will last until July 29 and has already drawn the participation of some 45,000 young people, the ASEAN School Games will bring about an exciting atmosphere, he said.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News