Aquathlon

Vũ Đình Duân crosses the finish line of the 2023 Aquaman Vietnam's men's solo event on October 29 in Bình Thuận Province. Photos of Aquaman Vietnam

PHAN THIẾT — Vũ Đình Duân successfully defended his top place at the DNSE Aquaman Vietnam 2023 on October 29 at Bình Thuận Province's Phan Thiết beach.

The national duathlon champion and record holder, who is also a former swimmer, completed his aquathlon's solo race in 2hr 05.59min, having opened a 5min gap with his runners-up, Kristof van Houdt and Trần Ngọc Linh.

Duân, from Quảng Ninh Province, was the third athlete finishing the 2km swimming stage after 34.40sec.

"I knew I could not be faster than senior athletes and coaches in swimming. I swam with only 80 per cent of my ability, then I focused totally in running," said Duân.

Running in hot weather, Duân's running result was not as good as it was last year. However, it was enough for him to take the lead after the first of the 21km stage.

"Last year, I ran with a pace of 3.45. This year, it is pace 4. My speed is remarkably down. This is partly because I had no rival chasing me and I had to make sure of my safety and avoid cramp when running up and down hill," said the SEA Games' relay champion.

Nguyễn Thị Kim Cương celebrates by ringing a gong after winning the women's solo category of the 2023 Aquaman Vietnam.

On the women's side, national triathlon champion Nguyễn Thị Kim Cương topped the podium in a time of 2:32.00 in her Aquaman Vietnam debut.

Hoàng Thị Lành and Trương Quỳnh Giang were second and third.

"Never too late to become person you want. What you have to do is to start your dream now," said Cương, who is member of both the cycling and triathlon national teams.

"I won the solo category with a 2km swim and a 21km run. My big thanks to coaches who supported me in training for months," said Cương, who also praised assistance from other people who gave her the best conditions when preparing for the tournament. "It will be a push for me in the next event of IRONMAN Phú Quốc later this year."

Athlete with disability Nguyễn Hồng Lợi finishes his swimming race and moves to the running session.

In the relay event, a duo with same name Nguyễn Đăng Khoa took top prize on the men's side.

The 24-year-old Khoa is a former swimmer of the HCM City team. He finished his stage in 29.38min, third in the swimming ranking.

The 35-year-old Khoa is a familiar face in the national marathon movement, with the best result of a top place at the VnExpress Marathon HCM City Midnight's half marathon event in February.

Nguyễn Đăng Khoa duo wins the men's relay of the 2023 Aquaman Vietnam.

From third position, he caught up with the second place runner at the seven kilometre mark and passed his final competitor 2km later, running solo to the finish line.

About 200m to the finish, the 35-year-old was joined by the 24-year-old and the pair crossed the line together, clocking 1:54.00.

Duo Ngọc Triển and Văn Hoàng were 2min after them, while Ngọc Duy - Lê Tấn Hi were third with a 5min gap.

"We hope that we will be good partners in the upcoming aquathlon competitions. Together, we will overcome challenges for victory in this new  and potential sport in Việt Nam," said Khoa, 35.

Organisers also presented awards to winners of the Half Aqua, Sprint Aqua and Kidaqua.

The DNSE Aquaman Vietnam is the first event combining swimming and running in the country. The second edition saw more than 1,000 athletes competing at the  NovaWorld Phan Thiết. VNS