Runner Hoang Nguyen Thanh was surprised by his own achievement at the Hong Kong Marathon last weekend and is awaiting official recognition of his record by the Vietnam Athletics Federation.
"I had planned this for a long time and prepared very carefully for the tournament. But I was also surprised that I achieved this challenging goal," Hoang Nguyen Thanh told VnExpress this afternoon.
Hoang Nguyen Thanh (right) with coach Tran Doan Minh Thien and Hoang Thi Ngoc Hoa after finishing the Hong Kong Marathon on January 21. Photo: Facebook/Hoang Nguyen Thanh
On the morning of January 21st, Nguyen Thanh finished 10th overall in the men's full marathon at the 2024 Hong Kong Marathon. He achieved a time of 2 hours 18 minutes and 42 seconds, thus significantly breaking the previous record set by legendary Nguyen Chi Dong with 2 hours 21 minutes and 51 seconds when he won a silver medal at the 22nd SEA Games in Hanoi in 2003.
This result also helped Nguyen Thanh set a new personal best, surpassing his previous record of 2 hours 25 minutes and 07 seconds when he won the gold medal in the SEA Games 31 marathon in My Dinh, Hanoi in 2022. On January 1st, Hoang Nguyen Thanh also set a new Vietnamese half marathon record with a time of 1 hour 6 minutes and 39 seconds at the Vietnam International Half Marathon. These achievements help the runner from Binh Phuoc maintain his position as the best marathoner in Vietnam.
Currently, the Vietnam Athletics Federation has not commented on Hoang Nguyen Thanh's new record, similar to the case of Hoang Thi Ngoc Hoa - who also broke the Vietnamese women's marathon record with 2 hours 44 minutes and 51 seconds when running the Hong Kong Marathon on the same day, January 21st.
The Hong Kong Marathon is recognized by the World Athletics Federation as the Asian Marathon Championship. The race course is also measured and classified by World Athletics as a Gold Label Road Race – a group of top road running races worldwide. Athletes participating in the Hong Kong Marathon can use their results to qualify for the Olympic Games – 2 hours 8 minutes 10 seconds for men, and 2 hours 26 minutes 50 seconds for women. Therefore, the likelihood of Hoang Nguyen Thanh's record being recognized by the Vietnam Athletics Federation is very high.
"I believe my record will be recognized, but I still have to wait for confirmation from the Federation. Before that, the Federation's General Secretary, Nguyen Manh Hung, congratulated me," the 29-year-old runner said.
Xuan Dieu - Quynh Chi
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