Marathon

Runners test the route of the Tiền Phong Newspaper National Marathon Championship 2024 which will be held on March 31 in Tuy Hòa City, Phú Yên Province. — Photo Tiền Phong Marathon

HÀ NỘI — Elite and amateur runners will vie for titles at the Tiền Phong Newspaper National Marathon Championship on March 31 in Phú Yên Province.

In its 65th version, the annual three-day tournament will feature the highest number of nearly 12,000 participants competing in different categories in four distances of full marathon, half marathon, 10km and 5km in Tuy Hòa City.

"It will be the first time in history that amateur runners who have high personal records in 42km and 21km will race from the same start line with the professional runners," said General Supervisor Nguyễn Mạnh Hùng, general secretary of the Việt Nam Athletics Federation.

"As you all know, marathon is currently strongly developing in Việt Nam. Many amateur marathoners run as well as elite ones. Our new format will stimulate both sides to strive harder for better results and contribute to the development of the national running movement," he said.

Hùng said the men's 42km class will see competitive running between famed athletes such as national champion and record holder Hoàng Nguyên Thanh, and former SEA Games 10,000m winner Nguyễn Văn Lai in the elite line, and Nguyễn Anh Quyết, Nguyễn Văn Long and Nguyễn Trần Minh Đức who have overshadowed nationwide marathons in recent years.

Nearly 12,000 runners will pass by Phú Yên's iconic sites including the Nhạn Tower, an ancient Champa relic, during the Tiền Phong Newspaper National Marathon Championship 2024. — Photo Tiền Phong Marathon

In the women's class, national champion Lê Thị Tuyết will vie against national record maker Hoàng Thị Ngọc Hoa.

Tuyết was the 32nd SEA Games silver medallist, while Hoa took bronze at the 31st Games.

Other SEA Games winners Nguyễn Thị Oanh and Phạm Thị Hồng Lệ will also join the race.

The duo will meet with strong amateur rivals such as Nguyễn Thị Kha Ly, Lê Minh Tuân and Nguyễn Thị Trà Giang on the way to the finish line.

At the close of registration, about 20 amateur runners of each category have been accepted to run with the elites.

"Another new point is that in addition to awards for the top five runners of each category, this year, organisers will present prizes to the best five athletes in the overall ranking," Hùng said.

He added that the non-loop routes in Tuy Hòa are beautiful, leading runners past famous local landmarks and sights; enjoying fresh ocean air and witnessing the sunrise at the Đại Lãnh Cape, Việt Nam's Easternmost Point.

However, the hot weather would be a big challenge for runners and while running along the beach they will face strong wind.

If they could overcome the challenges, new national records would be set on Phú Yên's tracks, he said.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Phú Yên's People's Committee Deputy Chairman Đào Mỹ said it was the first time that Phú Yên has hosted such a big event.

It would be an opportunity for the province to introduce their beauty, specialities, cultural and historical values to a large number of domestic and international visitors at the same time.

A press conference introducing the Tiền Phong Newspaper National Marathon Championship is organised on Tuesday in Hà Nội. — Photo Tiền Phong Marathon

"During the marathon, a cultural and tourism week will be organised from March 30 to April 5. An exhibition of local products, fine art, cuisine and music and song performance will be included," Mỹ said.

"People will have the chance to witness and discover our province's wild beauty that is not widely known yet."

Tiền Phong Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Lê Xuân Sơn, co-head of the organising board, said: "The marathon is not only an event to push the development of sport, but also an opportunity for the host city and province to introduce and develop its economic, social and tourism potential."

Other meaningful activities during the marathon are a flag raising ceremony; visiting and giving gifts for local poor families and soldiers at border stations; giving the national flags to fishermen and fishery control forces; and visiting veterans of no-number fleets which transported thousands of tonnes of weapons to assist the southern battlefield during the Việt Nam War. — VNS