Japanese marathoners Kentaro Masuda and Kyoko Otsuka won the men’s and women’s titles of the annual Da Nang International Marathon 2016 on Saturday.

And they’re off: Runners take part in the Da Nang International Marathon Race in the central city of Da Nang on Saturday. Over 4,500 participants joined the annual race along the pristine beach of Da Nang. — VNS Photo Cong Thanh

Kentaro clocked in two hours and 40.3 minutes to take the men’s 42km title in the fourth edition of the race in the coastal central city with the participation of over 4,500 runners.

Vietnamese Tran Duy Quang came in second with a time of 2hr 51.25min, two minutes ahead of Japanese Ishida Takashi who finished third with 2hr 25.52min.

Starting at 4.30am this weekend, Kyoko Otsuka finished her race at sunrise after clocking in 3hr36.40min.

She beat Louise Adderley of Australia, who came in second at 3hr 39.20min, and Swiss Anneli Sodergards, in third with a time of 3hr 55.28min.

Vietnamese Le Tan Lam completed the men’s half marathon (21km) race in 1hr27min, while his fellow countryman Dang Van Bao came in second place with a time of 1hr 29min.

Simon Smith from the UK finished the division in 1hr30min for third place.

In the women’s 21km, Ashley Lin from the US finished first with a time of 1hr 20min, ahead of her fellow American Rebecca Shore, who clocked in at 1hr 31min.

Vietnamese Duong Thi Khanh took 1hr 35min to finish third.

In the 10km race, Philip Seseman from the UK won the title with 31.10 minutes, while Mai Thi Loan from Viet Nam won the women’s title in 41.41 minutes.

Over 4,200 runners also joined a 5km Fun Run to raise money for Agent Orange (AO) children and underprivileged people in the city.

The race, which was organised by the city, the World Marathon Company and Pulse Active, was the first Vietnamese marathon to be certified by the International Amateur Athletics Association and the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races, and participants in the Da Nang International Marathon will qualify for the Boston Marathon.

VNS