News Viet Nam 24h: tháng 10 2013

Thứ Sáu, 4 tháng 10, 2013

Minh to face World No 1 Wei in Japan Open semis

(VNS) Badminton ace Nguyen Tien Minh earned a spot in the semi-final round of the Yonex Open Japan after defeating Ajay Jayaram of India 21-18, 21-13 yesterday in Tokyo.

Minh, No 5 seed, enjoyed the win after losing twice to Jayaram at the Indian Badminton League last month.

His next rival will be world and tournament No 1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, who won over host player Jun Takemura 21-10, 21-11 in another quarter-final match.

The two sides have met each other 11 times; Minh lost 10 times. His only win was three years ago at a tournament in Singapore.

In the second semi-final match in Tokyo, Chinese Huan Gao will play Japanese Kenichi Tago, seeded No 7.

The Japan Open will close tomorrow with a bonus of US$200,000 divided to winners.— VNS

Athletes set records at national championships

HCM CITY (VNS)— Three records were set on Sunday at the ongoing National Athletics Championships at Thong Nhat Stadium in HCM City.

Pham Van Lam of Ha Noi set a new best in men's long jump with a 7.73m jump, while earlier, Nam Dinh clocked a new record in the men's 4x200m relay at 1min 25.34sec.

Day 1 saw the return of Southeast Asian sprint queen Vu Thi Huong after a brief hiatus from early this year.

Huong stamped her dominance at the event earning gold and setting a record with her An Giang teammates in the women's 4x200m relay event, timing 1:36.25.

The tournament attracted more than 500 athletes from 48 cities and provinces with few of the nation's top athletes present.

Asian 800m champion Truong Thanh Hang is yet to recover from a broken leg, while rising star Quach Thi Lan and her younger brother are undergoing intensive training in Bulgaria.

The competition will conclude tomorrow. — VNS

National team gear up for Asian Cup

The Vietnamese men's football team.— Photo vtv

HA NOI (VNS)-- The Vietnamese men's football team will begin their training period at the youth football training centre in Ha Noi to prepare for the 2014 Asian Cup Qualifiers.

Under interim coach Nguyen Van Sy, the squad will practise for ten days at the centre before flying to Qatar for a friendly against the hosts.

The team will face the Uzbeks in their third match of Group E in the Asian Cup qualifiers on October 15 and the return leg one month later at My Dinh National Stadium in Ha Noi.

Then the country will travel to the United Arab Emirates to face the home team on November 11 and meet Hong Kong at home on March 5. Both are second-leg games.

Viet Nam are currently rooted to the table as they lost both matches against Hong Kong and the UAE.—VNS

U19s prepare for next challenge

The ASEAN silver medallists will take part in the Asian Football Confederation Under-19 Championship next month.— Photo bongdaplus

HA NOI (VNS)—The ASEAN silver medallists will take part in the Asian Football Confederation Under-19 Championship next month.

The Vietnamese side, who lost 6-7 to Indonesia over penalties in the ASEAN tournament's final, arrived home on Monday and will have two days rest before returning to training in Pleiku City, Gia Lai Province.

They will take part in a one-week practice before flying to Malaysia for a Group F tournament.

Viet Nam will first play Chinese Taipei on October 3. The next rivals are Hong Kong (on October 5) and Australia (on October 7). — VNS

Indonesia top U19 championships

Indonesia defeated Viet Nam 7-6 in a penalty shootout to claim the ASEAN Under-19 Football Championships on their home turf yesterday.— Photo vov

HA NOI (VNS) — Indonesia defeated Viet Nam 7-6 in a penalty shootout to claim the ASEAN Under-19 Football Championships on their home turf yesterday.

Goalkeeper Rafi Mundiato became the match favourite blocking two attempts from the Vietnamese side after another kick from the visitors went wide.

The hosts also missed two chances in the penalty, but it was still enough for them to win the championships for the first time in the nation's history.

It was Mundiato's day as he successfully saved consecutive attacks from the Vietnamese side who won all matches in the lead up to the final.

At the 28 minute mark, Viet Nam's Thanh Tung lodged a ball from the left wing in a straight shot which was diverted by the talented Mundiato.

The star goal keeper continued to frustrate Vietnamese players as he continued another strong defence from an attempt from Nguyen Cong Phuong's 10 minutes later.

Indonesia had several chances to pass Vietnamese keeper Ly Van Truong however they failed to capitalise on opportunities during the 90-minute match and the 30 minutes of extra time.

The victory also helped Indonesia recover their 1-2 loss to Viet Nam during a group round match on September 14.

In a separate match, East Timor overcame Laos 4-2 to take the bronze medal.

In other football news, Viet Nam defeated host Myanmar 3-1 to win a bronze medal at the ASEAN Women's Football Championships which wrapped up yesterday in Yangon City.

Defender Ngoc Anh scored just two minutes into the match from a header to the left corner. Twelve minutes later Thanh Huong scored making it 2-0 for the visitors.

The host narrowed the results at the 36th minute as captain San San Maw headed strongly, beating Vietnamese goalkeeper Dang Thi Kieu Trinh.

Striker Minh Nguyet made it 3-1 for the former champions at the 67th minute which saw a red card given to Myanmar's Moe Moe War. — VNS

VN to defend Chinese chess titles

Your move: Ngo Lan Huong (left) of Viet Nam will come to Australia this weekend to defend her Asian xiangqi champion title. — Photo thegioicotuong.com

HA NOI (VNS)— Viet Nam will leave for Sydney, Australia tomorrow to defend their titles at the Asian Xiangqi (Chinese chess) Individual Championships starting this Sunday.

"Our goal is to maintain our trophies in men's and women's individual events," said coach Hoang Dinh Hong.

"However, this will be a difficult task as our rivals have become more powerful. China will be our toughest opponents." Hong said Ngo Lan Huong was still a title candidate on the women's side but she had to try her best and be careful in making every move because there would be many surprises during the competition.

The coach was not confident about Vietnamese male masters, saying that they only had a 50-50 chance.

"Viet Nam and China equally share the opportunity to win. Things will be up to chance when they face each other. I think that the team with white pieces will have a higher chance of winning," Hong said.

Two of those competing for Viet Nam are national champion Lai Ly Huynh and Minh Nhat, neither of whom competed at last year's championships.

"Last year winner Nguyen Hoang Lam and bronze medallist Bui Duong Tran joined the Asian tourneys, so they could adapt to the difficult situation. Huynh and Nhat are young and lack international experience. But they played best in a July tournament held to select athletes for the Sydney competition. They are at their peak at present and at the same level as Chinese masters," Hong said.

The 16th championships will wrap up on September 27. — VNS

Marksmen set records in Ha Noi

Three new records have been set at the National Star Marksmen Tournament in Ha Noi.

HCM City's Phan Quang Vinh on Monday won a gold medal and a new national record in the men's 10m air rifle event with a score of 778.1 points. The old record belonged to Nguyen Duy Hoang of the Military team five years ago with 693.7 points. This year, Hoang took a bronze medal.

The second record went to Hanoian Duong Thi Chuc, who shot 586.1 points in the women's 10m air rifle event on Sunday.

Her teammate Tran Chau Tung took the third record in the men's 50m pistol event by scoring 635.2 points.

After two days of competition, Ha Noi topped the ranking table with four golds, followed by the Military and HCM City teams. — VNS

Hanoimoi table tennis tourney start

(VNS) More than 300 athletes take part in the Hanoimoi Newspaper Table Tennis Open which began yesterday at the Ha Noi's Trinh Hoai Duc Gymnasium.

Players will compete in the men's and women's singles and doubles events for a bonus of VND110 million (US$5,200).

Following the success of the first tournament, organisers opted to open a category for professional athletes in the national team.

Final matches will be aired live on Ha Noi Television on September 22. — VNS

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Viet Nam U19 ready for Laos clash (Sep, 20) Thu named top national referee (Sep, 20) Minh advance to second round at Japan Super Series (Sep, 19) VN advance to final four (Sep, 19) Hanoian rowers win national champs (Sep, 19) HCM City win Taekwondo contest (Sep, 19) Tuan sets new snatch record (Sep, 18) U23s win friendly in Hungary (Sep, 18) Da Nang teams to take part in national street football tourney (Sep, 17) Viet Nam top U19 tourney (Sep, 17)

Thứ Năm, 3 tháng 10, 2013

Marksmen set up records in Ha Noi

Hanoian Duong Thi Chuc, who shot 586.1 points in the women's 10m air rifle event on Sunday.— Photo sfs

HA NOI (VNS)– Three new records have been set at the National Star Marksmen Tournament in Ha Noi.

HCM City's Phan Quang Vinh yesterday won a gold medal and a new national record in the men's 10m air rifle event with a score of 778.1 points. The old record belonged to Nguyen Duy Hoang of the Military team five years ago with 693.7 points. This year, Hoang took a bronze medal.

The second record went to Hanoian Duong Thi Chuc, who shot 586.1 points in the women's 10m air rifle event on Sunday.

Her teammate Tran Chau Tung took the third record in the men's 50m pistol event by scoring 635.2 points.

After two days of competition, Ha Noi topped the ranking table with four golds, followed by the Military and HCM City teams.

The 18th tournament has attracted more than 150 athletes from nine teams. They will compete until Saturday at the Ha Noi National Sport Training Centre. – VNS

Linh wins table tennis tournament

Dinh Quang Linh.— Photo thethaovanhoa
HA NOI (VNS)— Dinh Quang Linh took the gold medal after beating Le Tien Dat 4-1 in the final of the Ha Noi Moi Newspaper Table Tennis Open at Ha Noi's Trinh Hoai Duc Gymnasium on Sunday.

In the final of the men's amateur singles, Quoc Viet of Agribank won 3-0 against Dinh Thang of Bao Duc Dentistry.

In the men's B category, Nguyen Trung Kien of Ha Noi T&T enjoyed a 2-1 victory over Duc Long of the Phu Tho Public Security Department.

Linh and Dat will attend the National Table Tennis Stars Tournament this October before competing at the SEA Games in December. — VNS

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Ha Noi top national rowing, canoeing contest (Sep, 24) Athletes set records at nationals (Sep, 23) Indonesia top U19 championships (Sep, 23) Minh claims bronze in Japan (Sep, 23) Teams announced for BTV comp (Sep, 23) VN gymnasts set for worlds (Sep, 23) Martial artist ready for Europe (Sep, 23) Shuttlers hope to net national titles (Sep, 21) VN U16 squad prepared for Asian qualification contest (Sep, 21) Minh to face World No 1 Wei in Japan Open semis (Sep, 21)

Da Nang qualify for U21 football tournament

(VNS) The Da Nang U21 football team on Thursday beat Dak Lak 2-1 to qualify for the National U21 Football Championship in Hai Phong city from September 26 to October 6.

The win took Da Nang to the top of Group B. Da Nang will join Viettel, Ha Noi T&T, Dong Thap, HCM City, Vinh Long, Song Lam Nghe An and Hai Phong in the final round.

Eight teams will compete in a two-group round-robin contest. The winners will qualify for the semi-finals.

The winner will walk away with VND250 million (US$12,000). — VNS

Athletes set records at nationals

Huong stamped her dominance at the event earning gold and setting a record with her An Giang teammates in the women's 4x200m relay event, timing 1:36.25.— Photo dantri

HA NOI (VNS)– Three records were set yesterday at the ongoing National Athletics Championships at Thong Nhat Stadium in HCM City.

Pham Van Lam of Ha Noi set a new best in men's long jump with a 7.73m jump, while earlier, Nam Dinh clocked a new record in the men's 4x200m relay at 1min 25.34sec.

Day 1 saw the return of Southeast Asian sprint queen Vu Thi Huong after a brief hiatus from early this year.

Huong stamped her dominance at the event earning gold and setting a record with her An Giang teammates in the women's 4x200m relay event, timing 1:36.25.

The tournament attracted more than 500 athletes from 48 cities and provinces with few of the nation's top athletes present.

Asian 800m champion Truong Thanh Hang is yet to recover from a broken leg, while rising star Quach Thi Lan and her younger brother are undergoing intensive training in Bulgaria.

The competition will conclude on Wednesday. – VNS

Huyen sets pole-vault record

Vu Van Huyen of the Military team set a new pole-vault record yesterday at the National Athletics Championships in HCM City.— Photo VSI
HA NOI (VNS)– "Iron Man" Vu Van Huyen of the Military team set a new pole-vault record yesterday at the National Athletics Championships in HCM City.

Huyen's 4.90m jump beat his previous national record of 4.85m set last year.

Pham Thi Thanh Truc of Vinh Long Province also achieved a new record in the women's hammer throw with a result of 47.77m.

Quang Ngai Province-born Pham Thi Binh proved her strength in the 10,000m, taking the lead from the beginning and finishing about 200m ahead of the runners-up with a time of 36 min 27.31sec.

Teenager Nguyen Thi Oanh of Ha Noi won the women's 400m while the men's title went to Le Trong Hinh of Thanh Hoa.

Men's quartet Trung Hieu, Cong Son, Ngoc An and Hung Dung won the first gold for the hosts in the 4x100m event with a time of 40.17sec, the team's first title after four days of competition.

An Giang won the women's gold with strong support from SEA Games medallist Vu Thi Huong.

In the 110m hurdle, Da Nang's Hoang Luc Kieu My and Ngoc Quang of Ha Noi claimed the women's and men's crowns, respectively.

The national championships will finish today with nine finals. – VNS

Minh claims bronze in Japan

Viet Nam's Nguyen Tien Minh shared third place at the Yonex Open Japan badminton tournament after losing to world and tournament No 1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia in the semi-finals on Saturday in Tokyo.

It was the 12th time the pair met and the 11th time the Vietnamese failed to overcome the top seed, losing 10-21, 5-21 in just half of an hour.

Also in third place was Huan Gao of China who went down 12-21, 12-21 to Kenichi Tago.

Lee yesterday claimed gold medal defeating No 7 seed Tago, 23-21, 21-17. — VNS

Former swimmer dead at 32

HA NOI (VNS)—SEA Games silver medal winner Tran Xuan Hien died in a traffic accident on Sunday, aged 32.

The Quang Binh Province-born swimmer was said to be one of the best athletes in Vietnamese swimming, as he ended the national 28-year medal drought in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games by winning a silver in the men's 100m breaststroke in 2001.

Hien retired two years later, working hard in daily life to make ends meet. Hien was a trainer and security guard at the Tan Phu District's swimming club in HCM City.

He is survived by a wife and two young daughters.

Friends and colleagues collected money to bring him home and organise his funeral. — VNS

Teams announced for BTV comp

Ha Noi T&T, Thanh Hoa, Viet Nam Under-23s and hosts Becamex Binh Duong will take part in the Binh Duong Television (BTV) Football Tournament from October 25 to November 3.

There will be three foreign teams from Asia - Kawasaki Frontale of Japan, South Korean students and Kelantan FA of Malaysia – as well as Bangu AC of Brazil.

Teams will be divided into two groups, playing in a round robin format, with the top four teams advancing to the semi-finals. — VNS

Thứ Tư, 2 tháng 10, 2013

Viet Nam U19 ready for Laos clash

(VNS) Viet Nam will face Laos in the second semi-final of the ASEAN U19 Football Championships today in Indonesia.

On Wednesday, Viet Nam beat Brunei 6-1 in the last group stage match with a dominating performance at the annual tournament.

Viet Nam finished top of Group B having won all five of their matches.

Laos finished second in Group A with nine points after three victories.

Hosts Indonesia also advanced to the semi-finals despite drawing with Malaysia on Wednesday.

The Group B's second-placed team will face rivals East Timor in what is expected to be a thrilling semi-final clash. — VNS

VN U16s begin Asian qualifiers

Viet Nam will start their 2014 AFC U16 Championship qualification campaign today when they kick off against Indonesia in Kuala Lumpur, Myanmar.— File Photo

HA NOI (VNS)—Viet Nam will start their 2014 AFC U16 Championship qualification campaign today when they kick off against Indonesia in Kuala Lumpur, Myanmar.

Coach Dinh Van Dung's team, who are in Group J, will then face Japan on Friday and the Philippines on Sunday.

The qualifiers include forty three teams divided into 10 groups of five and four teams.

The winners of each group and the best five second-ranked teams from all groups will qualify for the tournament in Thailand next year. — VNS

Shuttlers hope to net national titles

Top dog: Badminton ace Nguyen Tien Minh has dominated the National Badminton Individual Championships for years. — Photo badmintonfcforum.com

HA NOI (VNS) — The National Badminton Individual Championships will kick off on Sunday in HCM City.

More than 120 athletes nationwide will compete in men's and women's singles and doubles events for a total of US$8,000 in prize money.

"The tournament is preparation for the National Sport Games next year, so all participating teams have sent their best representatives to Phan Dinh Phung Gymnasium," said Le Thanh Sang, General Secretary of the Viet Nam Badminton Federation (VBF).

Included in the women's draw are veteran Nguyen Thi Binh Tho of Thai Binh and Pham Thi Trang from Thanh Hoa, who will both compete in the championships as athletes and coaches.

"Tho and Trang have moved to coaching careers but they will come back and play to make their teams more powerful," Sang said.

According to the official, who is also the federation's deputy chairman, the men's title will be won once again by Nguyen Tien Minh of HCM City, as he is the nation's top player and world seed No 5.

"Unless there is a huge shock, Minh will easily defend his crown. At present he has no worthy rival in the country.

"However there will be aggressive competition for runners up positions."

Sang said Le Thu Huyen, Vu Thi Trang, Nguyen Thuy Linh and Dinh Thi Phuong Hong were the favourites in the women's rounds.

Trang is the tournament's defending champion while Huyen is the national champion.

Linh is a raising star who has graduated from the junior level with honours in every age group she entered.

Hong has recently made such remarkable progress that Sang said the VBF plan to strongly invest in her career.

In singles events, players will take part in a qualification round. Winners will advance to the second stage and meet with wild-cards and seeded players.

The top eight athletes will then enter the next round where they will be divided into two pools, playing in a round-robin format. The best two in each pool will qualify as semi-finalists.

In contrast, the doubles events will apply the knock-out rule from beginning to the end. — VNS

Martial artist ready for Europe

Martial arts coach Nguyen Van Canh will participate in the Son Long Martial School Festival in France between October 9-14, according to the Binh Dinh Traditional Martial Arts Centre.

Canh, who has finished two-month training at the martial arts school in European and African countries, will perform in the martial arts festival.

The European-based Son Long School, founded by Master Nguyen Duc Moc in France in the late 1940s, has since developed schools in Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Austria, France, Algeria and Burkina Faso. — VNS

Ha Noi top national rowing, canoeing contest

Canoers and rowers from the country's capital dominated the National Rowing and Canoeing Championship that wrapped up on Sunday at the Ho Tay Rowing Centre.— File Photo
HANOI (VNS)— Canoers and rowers from the country's capital dominated the National Rowing and Canoeing Championship that wrapped up on Sunday at the Ho Tay Rowing Centre.

Boasting many internationals in its team, Ha Noi easily won 14 gold medals to top the medal table in the canoeing competition.

Binh Thuan claimed second place with four gold medals, while Thai Nguyen took third place.

In the rowing competition, which was held at the same venue, Ha Noi shrugged off challenges from other teams to take first place overall with seven gold medals, four silvers and two bronzes.

Hai Duong were in second with four gold medals, three silvers and two bronzes, while Ha Tinh took third place with two gold medals, one silver and one bronze. — VNS

VN U16 squad prepared for Asian qualification contest

(VNS) Viet Nam's Under-16 team is ready for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-16 qualifying round at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from September 23-30.

The team, which has been training hard at the youth training centre for five weeks, is expected to have a hard time making the grade as it falls into Group J with Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines.

Coach Dinh Van Dung's players will play the first game against Indonesia next Wednesday. Two days later, Japan will be their opponent in the second match – and then the Philippines in the last match next Sunday. .— VNS

VN U16 squad ready for Asian qualification

Viet Nam's Under-16 team is ready for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-16 qualifying round at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from September 23-30.— Photo VFF

HA NOI (VNS) – Viet Nam's Under-16 team is ready for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-16 qualifying round at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from September 23-30.

The team, which has been training hard at the youth training centre for five weeks, is expected to have a hard time making the grade as it falls into Group J with Indonesia, Japan and Philippines.

Xuan smashes javelin record

Soldier Bui Thi Xuan from the military made a 50.48m throw in the women's javelin event, setting a new national record and earning a gold medal.— Photo tuoitre

HA NOI (VNS) —The National Athletics Championships saw only one new record on the second day on Monday at HCM City's Thong Nhat Stadium.

Soldier Bui Thi Xuan from the military made a 50.48m throw in the women's javelin event, setting a new national record and earning a gold medal.

The old record of 48.8m was also made by Xuan at last year's HCM City International Athletics Tournament.

In the women's 800m track, the absence of the Asian champion Truong Thanh Hang because of injury gave other young athletes greater opportunity. Do Thi Thao of Ha Noi continued to prove her ability to win with a time of 2min 08.76sec, pocketing her second gold following her first one in the 4x800m relay on Sunday.

In the men's 800m, SEA Games winner Duong Van Thai left his rivals far behind to take the title, clocking 1:50.75.

Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tham of An Giang, replacing her teammate sprint queen Vu Thi Huong, won the women's 100m with 11.96sec. Huong decided to withdraw from her competitive strong point due to not having recovered from injury.

Nguyen Van Huynh from the military took the men's 100m gold medal in a time of 10.65sec.

Olympian Duong Thi Viet Anh of Bac Lieu made a disappointing performance finishing only second in the women's high jump event.

Anh who met no difficulty flying over 1.85m in height at the Mekong Delta's Sport Games earlier this month could only achieve the same after her third attempt at Thong Nhat Stadium.

Meanwhile, key rival Pham Thi Diem from Ben Tre Province, favoured to be the gold medallist, jumped over 1,85m in her first try.

The four-day tournament which attracted more than 500 athletes from 48 cities and provinces will finish today. — VNS

Thứ Ba, 1 tháng 10, 2013

VN gymnasts set for worlds

Viet Nam will take part in the upcoming World Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, Belgium from September 30-October 6.

More than 430 athletes from 71 countries and territories will compete in individual and team events.

Viet Nam will have seven representatives, six of them men. World Cup winner Nguyen Ha Thanh will shoulder heavy duty in men's vault, high bar and parallel bars.

Thanh pocketed a vault gold medal at the Grand Prix Osijek earlier this week and a parallel title at the last World Cup.

Phan Thi Ha Thanh, the world bronze medallist, will compete in all categories for women, defending her position in the top three of the vault event. — VNS

Saigontourist unveils autumn-winter domestic tours

(VNS) Saigontourist Travel Service Company has tied up with airline partners to offer discounted tours during autumn and winter.

Together with VietJet Air, it offers four-day and seven-day tours of Ha Noi, Ninh Binh, Ha Long and Bac Ninh from VND6.89 million (US$320) to VND9.99 million and a five-day Cao Bang-Ban Doc-Nguom Ngao Cave tour from VND7.66 million.

It also offers outbound tours. A 10-day France-Belgium-Netherlands-Germany tour starts at VND59.99 million, VND16 million less than normal.

Its six-, seven-, and nine-day Australia tours start at VND39.99 million, a discount of VND8 million.

There are also tours to Japan, Taiwan and other destinations.—VNS

Swedish Tuy Hoa beach resort opens for business

(VNS) Scandia International Tourism Village has opened in the central city of Tuy Hoa.

The US$10 million resort has 45 rooms and 12 villas besides beaches, parks and camping grounds.

It facilities include a spa, tennis courts, a supermarket, and entertainment zone.

It is owned by Sweden's Scandia. .—VNS

Quan Ba welcomes sharp rise in visitor figures

(VNS) The rural district of Quan Ba in northern border Ha Giang Province has reported a sharp increase in the number of visitors this year, especially in August.

The district, on the China border, has beautiful landscapes and many ethnic minority cultures.

The number of international tourists this year has more than doubled to 2,245. .—VNS

Quang Ninh to publicise tour prices

The northern Quang Ninh Province will publish the average prices of package tours and travel services offered by tour companies on its website and Quang Ninh newspaper for tourists' benefit.

The administration has ordered the finance and culture, sports and tourism departments to do a survey to find the rates.

Around 5.7 million visitors arrived in the province in the first eight months of this year, a 12 per cent rise year-on-year.

They included 1.6 million foreigners.

The province also plans to exploit three destinations in Bai Tu Long Bay – Hon Xep Park, Van Canh Island, and Lo O for tourism purposes.

Bai Tu Long Bay is east of Ha Long Bay and is geologically very similar to the latter, but has not seen comparable tourism development.

The ecological zone of the bay stretches over an area of 100ha with more than 100km of coastline. — VNS

4.9m foreigners visit Viet Nam

Viet Nam received more than 677,000 foreign visitors in the first 10 days of August, 22 per cent up year-on-year, according to the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism.

It took the total number of foreign visitors this year to nearly 4.9 million, a 7.9 per cent rise.

Most of the visitors came from Russia, China, Indonesia, Thailand, and New Zealand.

In the same period the number of domestic tourists increased by 11.7 per cent to 29.3 million.

HCM City welcomed over 2.4 million foreign visitors in the first eight months, up 1.4 per cent over the same period last year, according to the city Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.-VNS

Culture Ministry wants to develop coastal tourism

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has approved a project further developing Viet Nam's precious seaside environment into tourist resorts.

According to the project, by 2020, Viet Nam will have at least six major international tourist attractions, designed to compete with other similar places in the region.

Tourist harbours are planned for the popular destinations of Ha Long, Da Nang, Nha Trang, HCM City, and Phu Quoc, which will greet about 22 million foreign and 58 million domestic tourists each year.

The project will focus on key target markets, including ASEAN countries, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Russia, France and the UK.

Out of a total of over 3,200km of coastline, more than 3,000 sea-islands and 125 beaches, so far only 30 beaches and 10 islands have already been turned into tourist hot-spots.

These include Ha Long-Bai Tu Long-Cat Ba, Lang Co-Canh Duong, Hoi An-Cu Lao Cham, Nha Trang-Cam Ranh, Phan Thiet-Mui Ne, and Phu Quoc. — VNS

HCM City provides expats a chance to immerse themselves in culture

A festival called "HCM City – Our Home" will be held at the Van Thanh Tourist Resort in Binh Thanh District from September 10-12. The event aims at having city residents, particularly expatriates, learn more about the city, its history and culture.

The festival will include an exhibition titled "HCM City's Foreign Affairs: Integration and Development, a display of traditional dresses worn by Vietnamese ethnic minorities, a concert featuring don ca tai tu folk music, a "Favourite Song" competition, and a cooking contest.

On the occasion, the municipal People's Committee plans to release 100 copies of a book on HCM City's foreign affairs to commemorate the anniversaries of the country's diplomatic relations with 25 countries. — VNS

Luxury ship launched in Ha Long

The five-star Starlight Cruise launched in Ha Long Bay by the Oriental Sails Company last Sunday is offering a 2 day-1 night package at US$185 per person in September and $215 from October 1 to December 31.

Oriental claims the 58m cruise vessel is the safest in Ha Long with more than three metres of draft. The company operates just the one luxury ship now but plans to add four more.

Starlight Cruise has 32 cabins besides a restaurant, a bar, two lounges, a library, a wine cellar, hot tubs, and a mini-golf course. — VNS

Quang Ngai sets up hotline as tourism revenues soar

The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ngai Province has launched a cell phone hotline 0916424679 to receive and handle complaints from tourists.

According to the department, in the first six months of this year, the province welcomed 252,402 tourists, a year-on-year increase of 15 per cent, accounting for 56 per cent of the annual plan.

Of these, more than 20,000 were international tourists, up 40 per cent year-on-year.

Tourism revenues during this period reached VND237.6 billion (US$11.3 million), up 48 per cent year-on-year. — VNS