The Da Nang Newspaper Road Races 2024 will take place on April 21 in the area outside the Tien Son Sports Arena to celebrate the 49^th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification Day (April 30).

Thanks to the success and attraction of previous competitions, the 27th Da Nang Newspaper Road Races in 2024 promises to be exciting and attractive. Photo: P.N

Since its launch, the competition has attracted a large number of registers.

Mr. Tran Ba Hoang, a member of the Son Tra Runners Club, who has registered to compete in the category of agencies, factories, schools and amateur athletes, said "I am passionate about running and have maintained daily practice for 10 years. The annual Da Nang Newspaper Road Races is a prestigious tournament, so I don’t want to miss it. I and other members of the Son Tra Runners Club have registered to compete in the 7km distance. This is my 5^th year participating in the competition. I will try my best to achieve the best results".

Aside from the category of agencies, factories, schools and amateur athletes, the road races has a category for pupils and students under the Offices of Education and Training of districts, aimed at promoting the development of the physical education and sports movement in schools.

In 2023, the first prize for the entire group went to the Office of Education and Training of Thanh Khe District. Meanwhile, the Offices of Education and Training of Hoa Vang and Ngu Hanh Son districts took the second and third prizes respectively.

This year, the abovementioned units aim to protect their achievements, but it will not be easy when other units also raise their spirit of determination.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Tu Anh, Head of the Office of Education and Training of Hai Chau District, said: "The district-level Phu Dong Sports Games was successfully organised with 9 competitions, including road race. Top outstanding runners from the event were selected to compete in the forthcoming 27^th Da Nang Newspaper Road Races. Most of them are excited at the competition, because this is a healthy, useful playground, and a good opportunity, for them to exchange, learn, and exercise to study well.

According to Colonel Huynh Thanh Minh, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Da Nang Military Command, athletes in the military forces heighten their spirit of determination in training and competition. They determine that the competition is an opportunity for them to not only exchange and learn, and but also improve the physical strength, endurance, flexibility, and will to attack and suppress criminals.

He revealed that more than 400 athletes from 100 military units, such as the Ministry of National Defence stationed in the city, the local Military Command, and militia and self-defense forces, will compete in the races.

Through 26 successful seasons, the Da Nang Newspaper Road Races has signficantly contributed to not only promoting the development of the physical training movement, but also discovering talents of Da Nang athletics.

Previously, such runners as Nguyen Minh Toan, Huong Mo, Nguyen Thi Thanh Phuc and Nguyen Thanh Ngung took part in the races and became outstanding faces of Vietnamese athletics in the international arena.

From this success, the competition category for professional athletes is always maintained by the organisers in order to create opportunities for many talented athletes of high-performance sports in the city to interact, practice and improve their expertise.

This year’s competition will see the participation of professional runners from localities with a thriving athletics movement, apart from two groups of runners from the Da Nang Athletes Training Centre and the Da Nang National Sports Training Centre.

According to Head of the Office of Physical Education and Sports Management under the Da Nang Department of Culture and Sports Le Thi My Hanh, thanks to special attention of the city leaders, the physical training and sports movement in the city has gradually developed and spread in people's lives. Among popular sports, athletics receives great response from a large number of people.

Therefore, the Da Nang Newspaper Road Races always has drawn a large number of athletes, and the professional quality of the tournament has been improved year by year. Hopefully, with favourable weather conditions, this year's tournament will bring fierce competitions.

Reporting by PHI NONG - Translating by M.DUNG