A speed race between 'monsters' on the water's surface is about to begin.

Báo Dân trí•17/03/2024

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - Weighing around 400kg and capable of reaching speeds of up to 250km/h, these machines, worth 18-20 billion VND, are likened to "monsters" flying over the water.

The UIM F1H2O World Championship will hold its second leg in Binh Dinh province from March 29th to 31st on Thi Nai Lagoon, Quy Nhon city. This marks the first time Vietnam has had a representative participating in the 2024 World Championship. The Formula 1 World Championship is the highest-level speedboat racing competition in the world, thus sharing the F1 title and being similar to Formula 1 car racing.

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With speeds that can reach 250 km/h, the racing boats seem to fly across the water (Photo: Organizers).

The tournament, organized by the International Motorboat Federation (Union Internationale Motonautique - UIM) and promoted by H2O Racing, is often abbreviated as F1H2O. Similar to Formula 1 racing, UIM F1H2O consists of 6-8 Grand Prix races with approximately 10 teams from various countries, each team comprising two members. Each official race typically lasts about 45 minutes; each lap is over 2,000 meters long. Notably, the motorboats, weighing up to 400 kg, compete fiercely at speeds that can reach 250 km/h. Therefore, the races carry many risks and accidents such as capsizing, sinking, mechanical failures, and even collisions between boats.

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Vietnam has one racing team named Binh Dinh - Vietnam, featuring two top-class riders: the reigning 2023 World Champion Jonas Andersson and Estonia's best young rider Stefan Arand (Photo: Organizing Committee).

It is known that in Southeast Asia, Vietnam and Indonesia are the two countries that have hosted a race in F1H2O. However, only Vietnam has its own racing team, sponsored by Fleur de Lys Hospitality, with support from the People's Committee of Binh Dinh province. The cost of organizing the tournament is very high; the cost of the motorboat alone is around 18-20 billion VND, and each team needs at least 3 boats per season. Therefore, this sport is usually popular in wealthy countries such as Italy, Sweden, Qatar, and especially the UAE (which has 3 teams racing in the 2024 season).