Marathon 

NINH BÌNH — Kabashima Kento won and set new course record in the fourth Tràng An Marathon -- Footstrike From The Heritage on November 10 in Ninh Bình Province.

It was the second time in a row that Kento triumphed in this marathon.

The Japanese finished the men's full marathon 42km in a time of 2hr 38.22min, beating the targeted record of 2:58.12 by the organising board.

Vietnamese Hà Văn Dược came second with nearly two minutes later and Nguyễn Văn  Thuyết was third on 2:47.33.

In the women's race, Nguyễn Thị Trà Giang topped the podium clocking 3:01.41. She was followed by Lê Minh Tuân on 3:03.45 and Phùng Thị Trang on 3:14.21.

In the half marathon 21km categories, it was  Trình Đình An the male winner after he raced in 1:16.13 and Doãn Oanh Oanh the female champion who finished in 1:24.10.

The organisers also presented awards to the top finishers of the men's and women's 10km, 5km and age groups.

Along with the prizes for the fastest runners, there were also bonuses for the best cosplay marathoner and best running image of this year race.

This year about 5,000 runners took part in the annual Tràng An Marathon which was jointly organised by Vũ Media (VRace) and the Ninh Bình Province's Culture and Sports Department. 

 "Tràng An, the first and only dual world heritage site in Southeast Asia, provides green , beautiful and flat tracks. We believe that runners enjoy an exciting race under the traditional and historical values (in the ancient capital area)," said Vũ Văn Phong, VRace director and member of the organising board.

"We also hope through running and other sidelined activities, our runners would be more proud of of the national traditions and history and at the same time promote the culture and beauty of Tràng An to the world."

Meanwhile the provincial Director of Culture and Sports Department Nguyễn Mạnh Cường said the marathon was one of the activities to celebrate the third Ninh Bình Festival 2024. It was expected to help connect and spread images of the national cultural heritage in the land of Hoa Lư Ancient Capital to the wider comminity and to the world.

It was not only an activity to promote people to practise healthy lifestyle but also one of events to celebrate the 10th anniversary that Tràng An Landscape Complex was recognised as a dual UNESCO World heritage site. VNS