Golden swimmer wins three gold medals at US tourney

Vietnamese swimmer Anh Vien continues to shine in the US after getting gold in the 500 yard freestyle event at the FL Swimming Spring Senior Championship 2014 on March 2.

Anh Vien came first after clocking a time of 4:44:37, 4:26 quicker than her runner up, Cecilia Williams.

She nearly bagged another gold in the 200 yard individual medley when she came in just 0:63s behind the winner Justine Bowker, but instead received silver for her time of 59:23.

Anh Vien won three gold medals and a silver at the Florida Championship which attracted the participation of 60 top athletes competing at YMCA Sport Complex in Orlando, Florida, the US from February 27 to March 2.

National Futsal Championship opens in HCM City

Ten teams are competing at the 2014 National Futsal Football Championship which officially kicked off at HCM City’s Thai Son Nam competition house on March 2.

Group A includes Thai Son Nam (HCM City), An Phuoc hospital (Binh Thuan), Dat Vinh Tien (HCM City), Hoang Thu (Danang) and Sanatech (Khanh Hoa).

Thai Son Bac (HCM City), Kim Toan (Danang), Tan Hiep Hung (HCM City), Sanna (Khanh Hoa) and Hai Phuong Nam (HCM City) are pooled in group B.

All the teams will play in a round-robin format to select two group winners to the semi-finals.

Cash prizes worth VND30 million, VND20 million, and VND10 million will be given to the champions and two runners-up.

Players have a great chance to demonstrate their skills, and best players will be selected for the national Futsal team coached by Jose Bruno Formoso.

After the championship, the national Futsal team will train to prepare for the final round of the 2014 Asian Futsal Championship, which will be held in Vietnam from April 30 to May 30.

On March 2, hopefuls Thai Son Nam overwhelmed An Phuoc Hospital 7-0 in their opening game, while Dat Vinh Tien lost 2-4 to Kim Toan.

The tournament will last through to March 15.

Lao students join provincial sports festival

Nearly 200 Lao students joined their fellow Vietnamese friends at the Phu Dong Sports Festival of the northwestern province of Dien Bien, which opened on February 28.

The visiting athletes from four northern provinces of Laos, namely Luang Prabang, Udomxay, Phongsaly and Luang Namtha, will take part in football, sepak takraw and badminton competitions.

Meanwhile, about 2,400 students from high schools across Dien Bien will compete in 250 events of 14 sports such as football, volleyball, badminton, gymnastics and athletics.

The event aims to highlight the importance of physical education and promote exercise among young people. It is also a chance for Dien Bien to select and nurture outstanding athletes for the National Phu Dong Sports Festival in 2015.

The province’s 17 th biennial festival will last until March 2.

Hung out of V-League with broken leg

An Giang centreback Nguyen Anh Hung may be out for the rest of the season after breaking his leg in a challenge with Song Lam Nghe An fullback Tran Dinh Dong in the

V-League on Wednesday.

According to Nguyen Hai Huong, head of the Viet Nam Football Federation's disciplinary committee, Dong will be fined for violent conduct.

Two other cases have already been bought before the committee this season. Ninh Binh's Dinh Van Ta was charged for launching a kung-fu kick at Danny David of Dong Tam Long An, while Alan Bruno of Quang Ninh Coal broke Vu Anh Tuan's leg with a crunching tackle during the match against Hoang Anh Gia Lai.

Ha Noi 1 leads in women's football championship

Defending champions Ha Noi 1 defeated Thai Nguyen 3-0 to take the lead in the National Women's Football Championship's first leg in HCM City's Thong Nhat Stadium, yesterday.

Nguyen Thi Muon scored two goals for Ha Noi 1 in the eighth and 59th minutes, while Nguyen Thi Hoa hit another goal in the 45th minute.

In another match, Viet Nam Coal and Mineral defeated bottom-ranked team Ha Noi 2 by 5-0.

Ha Noi 1 temporarily took the lead with seven points, followed by Phong Phu Ha Nam and Viet Nam Coal and Mineral with four points each.

Today, the host, HCM City, will play against Phong Phu Ha Nam.