Favourite: Swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien is expected to win gold for Viet Nam at the 17th ASIAD in South Korea in September. — File Photo

HA NOI (VNS) — Viet Nam will send 64 athletes to the upcoming 17th Asian Games (ASIAD) to be held in Incheon, South Korea, from September 19 to October 4.

The country will compete in 20 of the 36 events. Hopes are pinned on shooter Hoang Xuan Vinh, gymnast Phan Thi Ha Thanh, weightlifter Thach Kim Tuan, swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, karate artist Nguyen Hoang Ngan, walker Nguyen Thi Thanh Phuc, and chess master Le Quang Liem.

Among them, Vinh and Thanh are the most successful. Veteran shooter Vinh rocked the shooting world by taking top honours and setting a new world record in the men's 10m air pistol event with 202.8 points at the recent ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in the US.

He also won a gold medal at the 2012 Asian Shooting Championships in Doha, Qatar, and snatched three more gold medals at the 27th Southeast Asian Games in Indonesia as well as a World Cup gold medal in Changwon, South Korea, last April.

Similarly, Thanh won a gold medal in the women's vault event at the Grand Prix Osijek in Croatia, and topped the same event at the Artistic&Rhythmic Gymnastics World Top Competition in Incheon last month.

Vien has become the first Vietnamese swimmer to rank in the world's top 10 in the women's 400m medley.

She was voted the No 1 athlete at the March's NASA Junior National Championship Cup held in Florida, the US, where the invited athlete won four gold and two silver medals in the girls' 17-18 year-old group.

The teenager was the most successful swimmer at the 27th Games. Taking part in eight finals, she won three medals and set two records.

Duong Thi Viet Anh (high jump), Tran Thi Hue Hoa (triple jump) and Vu Thi Huong (100m and 4x100m) are also prepared to compete for top honours.

Hoang Vinh Giang, deputy chairman of Asian Olympic Council and Viet Nam Olympic Committee, said Viet Nam's goal of winning two gold medals in South Korea was feasible. At the 16th ASIAD in China, the nation gained one gold, 17 silvers and 15 bronzes. — VNS