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Runners from around the world will run up to 70km on trails through the hills, ethnic minority villages, orchards and tea fields of Mộc Châu District, Sơn La Province today. A runner competing in the Vietnam Trail Marathon last year. This year, runners from around the world will run up to 70km on trails in Mộc Châu. — Photo courtesy of the organiser Established in 2019, Vietnam Trail Marathon (VTM) has grown to become one of the largest mountain runs in the nation. The race usually takes place during blossom season, but this year the COVID-19 pandemic forced a date change, so now runners will see Mộc Châu in harvest season -- another very special time of year in this region. The route will take runners along stunning trails through orchards and remote ethnic villages before eventually finishing in the Đồi Chè Trái Tim (Heart-Shaped Tea Field). On the starting line will be some of Vietnam’s top trail runners, as well as some strong international … [Read more...] about Mộc Châu hosts Vietnam Trail Marathon in harvest season

Nguyen Thi Huong grabs a SEA Games gold medal in the women’s 500m canoeing singles on May 20. (Photo: VNA) Hai Phong (VNA) – Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Huong grabbed a gold medal in the women’s 500m canoeing singles at SEA Games 31 on May 20. Meanwhile, in the women’s 500m doubles, Vietnam claimed a bronze. Thai rowers secured a gold, and Indonesian athletes earned a silver. Vietnam fetched a silver in the women’s 500m kayak doubles. The gold medal went to Indonesia. The canoeing/kayak competitions will continue in the northern port city of Hai Phong on May 21. SEA Games 31, themed “For a Stronger Southeast Asia”, features 40 sports with 523 events. The biennial event was initially slated for late 2021 but delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Games will run until May 23./. VNA … [Read more...] about SEA Games 31: Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian rowers win gold

In a hall on Japan's Sado island, 71-year-old Yoshikazu Fujimoto strikes the imposing drum mounted before him, producing a boom so powerful that it reverberates through the floorboards. Fujimoto is a veteran performer of Japanese taiko drumming, a musical form with roots in religious rituals, traditional theatre and the joyous abandon of seasonal festivals called matsuri. But for all its ancient pedigree, taiko as a stage performance is a fairly modern invention, developed by a jazz musician and popularised in part by one of Japan's most famous troupes: Sado island's Kodo. Fujimoto is the oldest of the 37 musicians that make up the group, which recruits members through a rigorous two-year training programme. It was founded partly to attract people to Sado, off Japan's west coast, and tours internationally, spreading the gospel of taiko. "Taiko itself is like a prayer," said Fujimoto, who came to Sado in 1972 to join the group that evolved into Kodo. This photo … [Read more...] about ‘Straight to your soul’: Japan’s taiko reinvents drum tradition