"Pride of My Fatherland" Half-marathon: Victory of professional sportsmanship

It can be said that up to this point, the "Proud of My Fatherland" 2025 Half-marathon has been a success beyond expectations, leaving in amateur and professional runners boundless emotions about a very meaningful sporting activity in the midst of the historic April days.

Giải Half-marathon — 6km start at 5:20 am

The 2nd "Proud of My Fatherland" Half-marathon in 2025 organized by Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper opened on the morning of April 13 with the main competition route located in Tan Nhut and Le Minh Xuan communes (Binh Chanh district, Ho Chi Minh City), where there are famous historical sites such as Lang Le - Bau Co relic site and the Revolutionary tradition site of the General Offensive and Uprising of Spring Mau Than 1968 next to the cultural site of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy (branch 2, Ho Chi Minh City).

About 2,300 amateur and professional runners, both domestic and international, enjoy community running with the goal of exploring their own limits. The newly paved, spacious rural roads have enthusiastically welcomed the footsteps of thousands of athletes.

21-year-old runner Ly Toan Phat Di (Dong Nai) won the men's 6km race after 19 minutes and 59 seconds. Following him were Nguyen Trung Hieu and Dang Quoc Tuyen. In the women's race, Truong Hong Uyen, Phan Tieu Loan and Susan Tran (Tran Thi Doan Trang) shared the first, second and third places.

Runner Truong Van Hieu finished first in the men's 11 km race with a time of 38 minutes and 9 seconds, about 40 seconds faster than famous runner Le Huu Loc and about 3 minutes ahead of third place Chau Hoang Ngan.

In the 11km women's race, national athlete Nguyen Khanh Ly finished first after 47 minutes and 29 seconds, followed by Cao Thi Thanh Thuy (48 minutes and 56 seconds) and Ngo Hong Thuy (58 minutes and 23 seconds).

On the 21km run, the three athletes who finished first in the men's race were Nguyen Van Chinh (1 hour 23 minutes 58 seconds), Nguyen Dang Khoa (1 hour 28 minutes 07 seconds) and Pham Quang Luu (1 hour 29 minutes 06 seconds).

The three female runners who won the highest rankings in the 21 km distance were Le Thi Ha (Binh Phuoc, 1 hour 34 minutes 54 seconds), Ho Minh Trang Nha (Agrirun, 1 hour 44 minutes 56 seconds) and Nguyen Thi Nga (1 hour 46 minutes 20 seconds).

The prizes for the top finishers in the 21km race are VND11 million, VND8 million, and VND5 million. In the 11km race, the first three runners to reach the finish line will receive VND8 million, VND5 million, and VND3 million. The prizes for the top three finishers in the 5km race are VND5 million, VND3 million, and VND2 million, respectively.

At the event, the Lao Dong Newspaper presented 5,000 flags to Binh Chanh District to implement "national flag routes" in the locality. This is part of the "National Flag Route" component of the "Proud of the National Flag" program implemented by the Lao Dong Newspaper over the past 6 years, presenting and signing a contract to present a total of more than 2 million flags to soldiers and people in many provinces and cities nationwide.

Also on this occasion, the program "Scholarship to support ethnic minority and poor students" managed and operated by Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper awarded 90 scholarships (each worth 1 million VND) to students in difficult circumstances living in Binh Chanh district.

Báo Người Lao Động trao 45 suất hỗ trợ học tập cho học sinh có hoàn cảnh khó khăn tại xã Lê Minh Xuân Ảnh: HOÀNG TRIỀU — Nguoi *Lao Dong* Newspaper awarded 45 scholarships to students in difficult circumstances in Le Minh Xuan commune.

The tournament was a success with high appreciation for both the expertise and the quality of the running track, as commented by most amateur and professional athletes. All hope that the tournament will continue to take place in the following years with increasingly professional organization, attracting a large number of athletes from many provinces and cities across the country to participate, contributing to the development of the running movement in Vietnam.