The annual Sa Pa international mountain marathon 2018, the sixth of its kind, took place in Sa Pa district, the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai on September 21-23, as part of the Sa Pa autumn festival 2018. 

In the race 

Over 3,100 athletes from 54 countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, France, Singapore, Sweden, the UK and Germany had a chance to experience spectacular and poetic natural scenery in one of the most beautiful mountain regions in Vietnam. 

They competed in the race with five distances of 100km, 70km, 42km, 21km and 10km. 

Tran Manh Hao, Vice Chairman of the district People’s Committee, said each route will include challenges such as climbing and going downhill in severe conditions, which require endurance and skills to conquer. 

On September 23, the organising board presented first, second, third prizes to 36 athletes. 

Theresa Auton from Australia and Le Anh Hao from Lao Cai finished first in 10-km race while Ban Thi May and Le Van Tuan Anh, also from Lao Cai, won the 15-km race. 

Le Thi Lan from Vietnam and Junwei Ng from Singapore topped in 21-km race. Sarah Easton from the US and Andrei Badiu from Romania triumphed in 42-km race. 

The 70-km route was conquered by Ngon Sin Phan from Hong Kong and Nguyen Sy Hieu from Vietnam. 

In the 100-km race, Evelyn Lek from Singapore and Nguyen Tien Hung from Vietnam grabbed first prizes. 

This year, over 38,000 USD in proceeds will be used for charity activities in Sa Pa and Newborns Vietnam – an organisation that offers medical equipment, raises public awareness of fatalities in newborns and supports disadvantaged people in Sa Pa. 

The number of participating runners rose by over 25 percent from 2017.-VNA