Vietnam seeks glory at Singapore Open

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam will participate in the Singapore Open Track and Field Championships which begin on April 28 at the National Stadium.

As an International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) recognised event, qualification spots for the upcoming Olympic Games in Brazil in August are up for grabs.

Vietnam has five athletes competing in this year’s event, the 78th edition of the annual tournament.

Nguyen Thi Huyen, who finished in Olympic B standards in the women’s 400m and 400m hurdles, will compete aiming to improve her time to secure an Olympic spot.

In last year’s Southeast Asian Games also in Singapore, Huyen pocketed two golds in the above events, timing 56.15sec and 52sec, respectively.

Walker Nguyen Thi Thanh Phuc also competes today in the women’s 20km race.

Phuc will be the first track-and-field athlete from Vietnam to compete in the two consecutive Olympics if she qualifies.

Phuc needs to walk within 1hr 36min to grab her slot. Her personal best is 1:33.36 at the London Games four years ago while her seasonal best is 1:42.36.

Sprinter Nguyen Thi Oanh will race in the qualification of the women’s 100m category.

She is No 1 seed in heat 2 out of four heats. Thirty two athletes will vie for eight places in the final in the afternoon.

Her teammate Le Trong Hinh will test his skills in the men’s 100m where he faces 48 other opponents in qualification.

Bui Thi Thu Thao of Vietnam is No 1 seed in the women’s long jump event.

The SEA Games gold medalist will have to gain a result of 6.70m to qualify for the Games. Her personal best is 6.65m.

After the Singapore Open ends on April 29, athletes will be able to compete for Olympic spots at tournaments in Chinese Taipei and Thailand in Asia. The Vietnamese will focus on walking bigger races in Lithuania and Ireland in June.-VNA