HÀ NỘI – The Việt Nam Sports Administration announced Herbalife as the key sponsor for national athletes and coaches for the upcoming Olympics and Paralympics in Brazil.

The announcement was made by the sports administration yesterday.

At present, 14 athletes have secured slots at the Rio de Janeiro games. Việt Nam aims to enter with at least 18 spots.

According to the agreement, Herbalife will also provide nutrition and supplementary products, advice and guidelines on nutrition to the athletes, who will participate in international tournaments from 2017 to 2021.

Việt Nam will compete at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games and the Asian ParaGames in 2017, 2019 and 2021; the Asian Games in 2018; and the Summer Olympics in 2020.

“In the last five years, Vietnamese athletes have had remarkable success in international events, especially at the SEA Games in 2015, where they set records and brought home gold medals. This is thanks to tremendous efforts put in during training and the competition,” said Nguyễn Thắng, head of Herbalife’s sub-region of Việt Nam, Thailand and Cambodia.

“It is an honour for Herbalife to continue providing nutritious food to athletes, thereby contributing to their success in regional and world sports events,” Thắng said.

The president also said more activities would be organised.

Conferences on nutrition and its role in sports will be held, where experts will be invited to share their knowledge. Herbalife, which also hopes to sponsor athletes with disabilities at the Paralympics and the ParaGames, will be a bridge connecting Việt Nam with the world’s elite sports-training centres, so more Vietnamese can enjoy advanced technologies.

Herbalife has been the official sponsor of the Việt Nam sports teams since the London Olympics in 2012. -- VNS