Viet Nam News
Asian Para Games
HA NOI — Viet Nam team finished 12th in the medal tally of the Asian Para Games which finished on Saturday in Indonesia.
The team brought home eight gold, eight silver and 24 bronze medals. China topped the overall rankings with 172 golds, 88 silvers and 59 bronzes, followed by South Korea with 53 golds.
On the last day, Viet Nam won three more bronze medals in table tennis and badminton.
On Friday, Vietnamese chess players bagged two more golds.
Nguyen Thi My Linh clinched the seventh gold for Viet Nam in the women’s individual rapid VI-B2/B3 category, before Doan Thu Huyen, Tran Thi Bich Thuy and Nguyen Thi Minh Thu took the eighth in the women’s team rapid P1 discipline.
In addition, the chess team pocketed a silver medal by Nguyen Thi Kieu (women’s individual rapid P1) and three bronzes by Thuy (women’s individual rapid P1), Dao Thi Le Xuan (women’s individual rapid VI-B1), and Xuan/Pham Thi Huong (women’s team rapid VI-B1).
Notably, Vietnamese swimmers contributed four golds in the total of eight of Viet Nam team. Vo Thanh Tung earned three golds and broke three Asian Para Games records.
Disabled swimmer Tung triumphed in the men’s 200m freestyle S5 event, 50m backstroke and 100m freestyle.
The southern province of Can Tho-born Tung also bagged a silver medal in the men’s 50m butterfly.
The Asian Para Games, which follows the Asian Games every four years, attracted athletes from 45 countries and territories in Asia this year. The Vietnamese team comprised of 75 members, including 52 athletes competed in seven of 18 sports, namely swimming, track and field, weightlifting, chess, badminton, table tennis, and judo.
At the previous Asian Para Games in 2014, the country won nine golds, seven silvers, and 13 bronzes, finishing 10th in the overall rankings.
After this tournament, Viet Nam will prepare to compete in the ASEAN Para Games in the Philipppines in 2019 and then Paralympic Games in Tokyo in 2020. — VNS