Vietnam to invest 4.8mln USD a year in training 20 elite athletes abroad
Xinhua, March 2, 2015 Adjust font size:
Vietnam plans to send 20 elite athletes from seven sports on overseas training trips in hope of winning medals at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, local media reported Monday.
Although under consideration by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism before being forwarded to the central government, the plan was prepared for the 2015-2020 period and is estimated to cost 100 billion VND (4.8 million U.S. dollars) a year, reported local Tuoi Tre News.
The 20 athletes, who will go through training trips in Japan, the United States, Bulgaria and France, take to seven sports including track and field, swimming, weightlifting, gymnastics, fencing, shooting and cycling.
Under the plan, two track and field female athletes, Quach Thi Lan and Nguyen Thi Huyen, will leave for the U.S. in mid-March for three months, and will return to Vietnam to take part in the 28th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, to be held from June 5 to 16 in Singapore.
Their results at the SEA Games will serve as the basis to consider if they should continue training in the U.S.
Meanwhile, the gymnastics team will leave for Japan, and the weightlifting team is set to visit Bulgaria. Endi