Tran Duy Quang celebrates with his national flag at the 246.8km Spartathlon in Athens, Greece, over the weekend. (Photo courtesy of Tran Duy Quang)Hanoi (VNA) - Tran Duy Quang has become the first Vietnamese runner to complete theSpartathlon in Athens, Greece, by covering 246.8km.
The eventis an ultra-distance foot race that takes place in September every year inGreece. It is one of the most difficult and satisfying ultra-distance races inthe world because of its unique history and background.
Quang wasthe only Vietnamese representative out of 376 athletes running in the event.
Heovercame many outstanding athletes to rank 40th with a time of 31:10.37.
TamásBódis from Hungary finished first with a time of 26:29.24. The runners-up wereZoltan Csecsei, also from Hungary, with a time of 27:16.59, and Brunner Radekof the Czech Republic with a time of 27:26.20.
Thetournament follows the footsteps of Pheidippides, an ancient Athenian longdistance runner, who in 490 BC, before the battle of Marathon, was sent toSparta to seek help in the war between the Greeks and the Persians. Accordingto ancient Greek historian Herodotus, Pheidippides arrived in Sparta theday after his departure from Athens.
Quang,30, was the first Vietnamese runner to win the Vietnam Mountain Marathonover 100km in Sa Pa, Lao Cai province, which is one of the largestultra-running events in Asia and a landmark event in Southeast Asia./.
VNA
