The story of a farmer who loves running, Tran Tu Phap

Right from the starting line of the 2025 Tuyen Quang Marathon: “Tuyen Quang - Where beauty converges”, Tran Tu Phap was always the center of attention. With a sincere face and a constant smile, he constantly made jokes, creating a joyful atmosphere and releasing everyone from pressure.

Then, Tran Tu Phap started running. And when he started running, it was hard for anyone to catch up. During the 10km journey from Nguyen Tat Thanh Square through Mac Dynasty Citadel, Lo River, Tinh Huc Bridge, Nong Tien Bridge or the lantern street, the runner born in 1984 always traveled alone. When the sunlight spread, he crossed the finish line, winning the Gold medal in the 10km distance for men.

"This is the third time I have won the Tuyen Quang Marathon," Tran Tu Phap shared with Tien Phong newspaper reporters. "There is nothing more wonderful than running in your own hometown. In the third season, the tournament has learned a lot of experience to make the organization more professional and meticulous. This year's route is also very reasonable and beautiful, bringing a lot of inspiration to the athletes."

Tran Tu Phap at Tien Phong Marathon - Quang Tri 2025, where he won the 21km men's amateur race.

Born in Yen Phu commune (Ham Yen), about 60km from Tuyen Quang center, because of doing manual labor from a young age with all kinds of jobs, Tran Tu Phap created for himself a flexible health. With his agile legs, the Tay ethnic boy started running in grade 9, then participated in many other competitions.

However, it was not until 8 years ago, by chance participating in a half marathon in Ha Giang , that Tran Tu Phap learned about and participated in professional long-distance cross-country races.

Tien Phong Marathon 2025 in Quang Tri is the first time Tran Tu Phap has debuted in the National Marathon Championship and the long-distance race of Tien Phong newspaper. Although he was qualified to start in the Elite group for athletes of the professional and amateur categories with high achievements, because of late registration, he had to start later. However, it did not take long for Tran Tu Phap to join the leading group, then finished with a time of 1 hour 14 minutes 56 seconds, ranking first in the 21km amateur category of the age group 40-49.

Tran Tu Phap stands on the podium at Tien Phong Marathon 2025.

"This is an extremely memorable memory, bringing me happiness when achieving good results in the most prestigious and oldest running tournament in Vietnam", Tran Tu Phap smiled brightly, "I am also very happy because through this tournament I was able to appear on TV a lot, at the same time making everyone know about Tuyen Quang, that this place always has farmers like me, although not professional but can still run well".

With his simplicity, Tran Tu Phap does not consider himself a professional runner. He emphasizes that he is still a hard-working farmer who earns money to take care of his wife and children. "My main job is still working as a laborer, cutting grass, spraying pesticides or doing anything that makes money," said the runner from Tuyen Quang. "Only when I enter a race do I set aside time to practice. For this race, I will practice about 3 sessions. If I run 21km, the training time will be longer, about... a week."

According to Tran Tu Phap, running has changed his life. "Before, I only focused on working, now I have more joy when running. I feel life is more meaningful," he said. "Moreover, thanks to running, I also have better health, eat well and sleep well, so I can work better to take care of my family."

Tran Tu Phap is proud of his medal from the 2025 Tuyen Quang Marathon.

At 41, Tran Tu Phap is still full of energy. As seen at the Tuyen Quang Marathon 2025, he was completely unrivaled even though he was not at his best.

"I hope that the running movement in Tuyen Quang will continue to develop, and the tournament will also be upgraded, attracting more top athletes to increase competitiveness. Besides, it will contribute to promoting the image, people and tourism of Tuyen Quang, a beautiful land rich in cultural and historical traditions.

As for me, I will continue to do what I love, working and pursuing my passion for running, having both health and medals. In the near future, I will participate in the 21km run in Ha Long and the 42km run in Hai Phong. My goal is to achieve the highest results and be listed on the gold list of the 42km sub 3 (completed in under 3 hours)", Tran Tu Phap said confidently, with the familiar smile of a farmer who loves running.