The Fansipan Mountain Marathon 2020 marked the tenth edition of the event, which was first held in 2010 to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi. The race was jointly held by the Lao Cai Provincial People’s Committee, the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Hoang Lien National Park, Sapa Tourism Association, and Ly A Sang Travel Company, with the sponsorship of Sun World Fansipan Legend Tourist Complex. Running through jungle More than 200 runners from over 20 running and trekking clubs across the country participated in the event, who raced 11.5 kilometres from Bac (Silver) Waterfall to the peak of Fansipan Mountain. The weather was favourable for racers on the running day as the temperature was not too cold and it was only a little bit foggy in the early morning. The fog was quickly swept away and sunlight lit up the green space of the Hoang Lien mountain range, making the trail more scenic and inspiring for runners. Le Lenh Thuc and Ha Thi Hau, two winners of the event Le Lenh Thuc triumphed in the men’s category after clocking a time of 2:06, while Ha Thi Hau, who reached the finish line 10 minutes later, took the lead in the women’s category. Both of them came from the Sapa Tourism Association team. The organising board also presented prizes to 61-year-old Nguyen Khac Xuyen and 19-year-old Nguyen Ngoc Phu, who were recorded as the oldest and the youngest participants in this year’s event, respectively. 61-year-old Nguyen Khac Xuyen (L) was the oldest participant in this year’s event Sharing her feelings about her victory, Ha Thi Hau stressed that everyone who participated in the event is a champion as the Fansipan Mountain Marathon 2020 is a race to conquer oneself. It is true that conquering Fansipan is indeed never an easy challenge. Many runners had to pause their journey due to cramps or slipping down. However, they received timely encouragement and support from their companions and …
Snowdon trail marathon
Second VnExpress Marathon Hanoi Midnight begins super early-bird ticket sales
The marathon, organized by VnExpress and Hanoi People’s Committee, expected to take place on Nov. 21, has begun selling Super Early Bird tickets, ranging from VMD270,000 ($11.76) to VND810,000 ($35.28). Ticket prices are expected to increase in later stages, encouraging runners to register early and have a head start in preparing for the race. Ticket types Super Early Bird Early Bird Regular Late 5 km 270,000* 325,000 430,000 540,000 10 km 540,000 700,000 865,000 1,080,000 21 km 650,000 810,000 1,025,000 1,295,000 42 km 810,000 975,000 1,190,000 1,405,000 *Vietnamese dong Interested runners can register here . Groups of over 100 people would be offered discounts of up to 28 percent, groups of 50-100 people 20 percent, groups of 30-49, 15 percent, and groups of 10-29, 10 percent. VM Hanoi Midnight on Nov. 28 last year was the first big night marathon staged in Vietnam, with around 5,500 participants and many personal records broken. The course runs from Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square by the Hoan Kiem Lake, past attractions like Hanoi Opera, St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, and West Lake. Trinh Quoc Luong finished first in the full marathon. This was his very first VM event. Pham Thi Hong Le finished first in the women's full marathon. This was her third time participating in VM and also her third time winning the full event. VnExpress has organized two marathons in the south central beach town Quy Nhon and one in the central resort town Hue. …
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Rural women blaze trail to prosperity
Rural women blaze trail to prosperity (07-03-2005) BAC GIANG – Overcoming poverty and challenges posed by life, the women from a rural commune of Bac Giang northern province have laboured to prosper from family farming. A case in point is Nguyen Thi Nhien, 43, from Tu Mai Commune of Yen Dung District, who now owns a modern house with all amenities, and has her two children studying in universities. Nhien married a war invalid, who had lost an eye, an arm and a leg, in 1982. She was then staying in a bamboo-roof house, farming a plot of land given by their parents. "At the age of 20, I volunteered to live with a war invalid. Life was very hard because our parents were poor, and not in a position to help us," she said. Life became more complicated as they had two children within three years. She now had to take care of the husband, children, work in the field, and do extra jobs to support the family. Taking note of the dire situation, the commune’s authorities helped her build a cement house and allocated nine sao of farming land (one sao equals to 360sq.m) to the family. Adept at farming, she soon learnt from the experiences of other farmers and carefully selected categories of rice seeds suitable to the soil and applied advanced cultivation methods. She also grew vegetables. Within years, she had an annual output of three to four tonnes of rice, maize and potato, enough to support her family and the education of two children. From a VND1 million loan from the commune’s Blind Association in 1996, she bought a cow, and now has a herd of 10. "There were times when there was no food to eat. But that has changed,’’ she says. Strength of character When another woman Than Thi Nhu, lost her husband and two children from food-poisoning ten years ago, life had come to a standstill. Overcoming grief, Nhu married a soldier and Agent Orange victim with five children. The children were also suffering from the aftereffects of AO. "Initially, I was sad …
