Dang Thanh Thai defended his yellow jersey in the fourth stage of the Ben Tre Television Cup yesterday.

The Hau Giang cyclist took the lead with a combined time of 12:46.58, followed by Tran Le Minh Tuan of the Army and Trinh Duc Tam of ADC-Vinh Long Television.

Tran Van Quyen of the Army team won the stage. Quyen clocked a top speed of 41.600kph during the 128km fourth stage from Can Tho City to Ben Tre City, which he completed in 3:04.37.

Military Zone 7 led the team race with a time of 38:28.24, with Domesco Pharmacy Dong Thap 1 and ADC-Vinh Long Television rounding out the top three.

The event will finish today after 70 cyclists pedal a 130km course through Ben Tre Province.

Loi wins mountain marathon

Tran Van Loi won the men's event at the annual Ba Ra Mountain Climbing Marathon in Phuoc Long District in the southern province of Binh Phuoc yesterday.

Loi, on the host team which also triumphed in this event in 2009, finished first in the 7.7km race to Ba Ra Peak which he finished in 34:51.72. Veterans Nguyen Dang Duc Bao of Khanh Hoa and Ta Thanh Xinh of Binh Thuan were the runners-up with a time of 35:42.23 and 35:33.75, respectively.

In the 5.4km women's course, Quang Ngai's Pham Thi Binh took the title with a time of 33:25.73. Quang Ninh's Loan Thi Dung and the Army's Phung Thi Hang came in second and third, respectively.

The event, which drew hundreds of runners from 14 premier teams nationwide and three teams from Laos and Cambodia, was a warm up for the Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper marathon in March in the central city of Hue.

Fund launched for injured athletes

Fifty Vietnamese athletes who have suffered from injuries received financial support of VND900 million (US$45,000) from the Fund for Vietnamese Athletes, which was launched on Thursday in Ha Noi.

The fund, which is sponsored by the cable TV provider Audio Vision Global (AVG), aims to provide injured athletes with money for surgery.

"The first beneficiaries are top athletes and coaches who have performed outstandingly for the country in the past. I hope that the fund will help injured athletes in the future," said the vice chairman and general secretary of the National Olympic Committee, Hoang Vinh Giang.

AVG's chairman Pham Nhat Vu said the fund would also help poor and retired athletes. — VNS