Vietnamese students proved too strong for the rest of the field at the ASEAN Schools Games (ASG) which closed in the capital of Hanoi on June 28.

The hosts dominated the nine sports organised at the fifth Games.

Vietnam exceeded their goal of finishing second in the medals table, finishing on top with 50 gold, 27 silver and 24 bronze medals.

Malaysia was second with 25 golds, 30 silvers and 30 bronzes, followed by Thailand , which grabbed 24 gold, 31 silver and 33 bronze medals.

None of delegations went home empty-handed.

"The Games was a success with Vietnam hosting them for the first time and welcoming a record number of participating countries and competitors," said Ngu Duy Anh, deputy head of the ASG organising board, at the press briefing on June 28.

" Vietnam topped the table thanks to the efforts of our young athletes who showed a vast improvement from the previous Games," he said

The host's success was mainly attributed to the swimmers who had previously never won a gold medal between them, but this year claimed nine.

The pencak silat martial artists were also heroes with 16 gold medals, three higher than last year in Indonesia.

"It is the second time that pencak silat has been included in the ASG, and our athletes did much better then expected because we faced strong rivals. They did a great job," said coach Tran Kim Tuyen of Vietnam.

Track and field athletes also did well with 14 golds.

The Vietnam ASG kicked off on June 23 with the participation of more than 1,500 athletes and officials from eight delegations. They return home on June 29 after enjoying one of four tours around Hanoi and its surrounding areas.

At the closing ceremony on June 28, the official flag of the Games was given to a representative from the Philippines, which will host the next annual event.-VNA