Vietnam football team defeated in Japan by Vissel Kobe

The squad fell to J-League 1 team Vissel Kobe, 1-5, which played under Viet Nam's acting coach, Toshiya Miura, some years ago.

Vissel Kobe team captain Daisuke Ishizu scored the first goal at the 27th minute, and Vietnamese midfielder Le Tan Tai levelled the result eight minutes later with a left kick.

Marquinhos pushed Vissel Kobe ahead near the end of the first half while Pedro and Ryo Matsumura added three more goals for the host in the second half.

The Vietnamese team will have one more match, against J.League 2's Kyoto Sanga, on Wednesday.

Liem out of the running in Millionaire Chess tournament

Vietnamese grandmaster Le Quang Liem fell out of contention for the championship of the Millionaire Chess tournament in Las Vegas, the United States following a loss yesterday to David Berczes of Hungary.

The third-seeded Liem suffered the unexpected loss in the sixth round of the nine-round tournament and fell to the 36th rank with 3.5 points.

Still in contention are Wesley So of the Philippines, Yu Yangyi of China and Daniel Naroditsky of the United States with five points each.

Liem will go up against host Irina Krush in the next round.

Saigon Heat out of ASEAN Basketball League play-off

The Saigon Heat fell out of contention for the play-offs following a 74-85 loss to Hitech Bangkok City of Thailand in the ASEAN Basketball League in Bangkok last Saturday.

The Heat start well, finishing the first quarter at 18-16 but failing to maintain their momentum in the succeeding quarters as Hitech, the tournament leader, unleashed its offensive and defensive might in the second and fourth quarters.

In the next match, the Heat will play at home against the Singapore Slingers, who beat them 79-65, in Singapore on October 1.

Nghe An overcome T&T to claim record U21 championship

Song Lam Nghe An was yesterday declared newly crowned national U21 champion after dethroning defending champions Ha Noi T&T, 1-0, in their final match in Can Tho Province.

Their victory was a tournament record, as it was the fifth time Nghe An have won. It also helped them avenge a 0-2 loss in a previous group match.

Striker Ho Phuc Tinh made the game's only goal at the turning point, the 61st minute, when he left behind all of T&T's defenders and the goalkeeper to score with a low shot.

It was Tinh's fifth goal in Can Tho, making him the tournament's best scorer. He was also voted best player with his outstanding performance during the entire championship series.

T&T pushed up the speed to find an opportunity to score the equaliser but failed to break through the strong defence of Nghe An, who won all four matches with 14 goals. Dong Thap and SHB Da Nang shared third place.

Trang makes badminton history

Vu Thi Trang made history when she reached the 60th world ranking, the highest for any female Vietnamese badminton player.

The Badminton World Federation's latest release confirmed the result for Trang, 22, the Bac Giang Province-born athlete who jumped 14 steps from her previous world ranking to become Viet Nam's best female athlete.

The winner of the first-ever Viet Nam International Series had shown remarkable progress by rising 40 steps in two months to enter the list of the world's top 60 badminton players.

Before Trang, former national champion Le Ngoc Nguyen Nhung ranked 61st in February 2009. Trang will fly to Odense City next week to take part in the Yonex Denmark Open from October 14 to 19 and will play against Simone Prutsch of Austria, ranked 85th, in the qualification round.