Vietnam to invest big on top junior athletes

Vietnam will create more favorable conditions for its most outstanding junior athletes in preparation for the Olympic Games 2024, a local sports official said on Tuesday.

"A special talent training program designated for Olympics 2024 campaign is taking shape. Most prominent young athletes in key events will have long training courses in the United States or European countries," the official from the Vietnamese General Department of Sports and Physical Training said, declining to be named.

The Vietnamese youths, who have won gold medals at the recent 17th Asian Junior Athletics Championships, will be included in the program, the official said, noting that local athletics stars such as Truong Thanh Hang, Vu Thi Huong and Nguyen Dinh Cuong have all emerged from Asian junior sporting events.

At the 17th Asian Junior Athletics Championship from June 3 to 6 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam is ranked 7th in medal standings with two golds, three silvers and three bronzes. Vietnamese girl Nguyen Thi Truc Mai grabbed a gold in the long jump with 6.34 meters. Her compatriot Le Tu Chinh secured another gold in the women's 200 meters with 23.94 seconds, while the Olympics 2016 sets the standard at 23.20 seconds.

Japan topped the medal tally with 13 golds, 10 silvers and four bronzes, followed by China's 11 golds, seven silvers and four bronzes and India's seven golds, four silvers and four bronzes in the tournament.

So far, Vietnam has booked 19 berths in the upcoming Rio Olympic Games out of badminton, rowing, shooting, fencing, race walking, weightlifting, gymnastics, weightlifting, Judo, according to the local committee. Endit