Marathon

About 10,000 runners will compete in the fourth VnExpress Marathon Hà Nội Midnight 2024 on November 22-24. Photos of organisers

HÀ NỘI — The fourth VnExpress Marathon Hà Nội Midnight 2024 will feature 10,000 competitors running to discover the capital city's most beautiful time of a day.

The tournament, known as the Hyundai Thành Công Cup, will be kicked off at 00.05 on November 24 and marathoners will race in four distances of 5km, 10km, 21km and 42km.

Among participants are amateur and elite runners including 300 foreigners from world marathon hubs such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Japan. Many of them came to check in for their bib and race kit on November 22.

The organizers starts the countdown timer to start of the marathon.

They will start and finish in front of the Thống Nhất Park. The routes will lead them through old quarter streets such as Nhà Chung, Nhà Thờ, Hàng Trống, Báo Khánh before they check in at the iconic Hoàn Kiếm Lake and roads around the West Lake.

For the half and full marathon categories, they will run through a new construction of Vĩnh Tuy Bridge to reach Long Biên District on the other side of the Red River and return to the city through historic Long Biên Bridge.

Earlier on November 23 morning, about 2,000 children from six to 10 will compete in a 700m race around the Trần Nhân Tông pedestrian street.

At a press briefing on November 22, the organisers announced a total bonus of nearly VNĐ1 billion (US$) would be delivered to the runners with best time and winners of age groups as well as fastest running team.

Runners seen at the 2023 tournament.

Speaking at the briefing, deputy head of the organising board Ngô Mạnh Cường said VnExpress Marathon Hà Nội Midnight would not only be a race, but also a cultural, tourism and cuisine event, providing people an unique opportunity to explore the capital at night in the chilly fresh air.

"We hope that the running can promote the sports movement in the city in particular and Việt Nam in general.

"It is expected that the three-day tournament will attract more than 50,000 visitors who are athletes and their relatives to travel to Hà Nội. They will partly spread the images of our race, runners, local people internationally. It would push the local tourism and economic development, especially the night economy of the capital," he said.

Cường added that good feedbacks from marathoners were valuable awards and motivation to the organisers. They also tried best to fix all problems of the previous editions, striving to build a professional well-organised events in the future.

He hoped that all marathoners would enjoy the fourth marathon's renovation and changes and run to achieve their best results. VNS