Japanese athletes won the VM Nha Trang race as expected
The surprise took place at the most important distance – the full marathon of the MetaSports Marathon Marvelous Nha Trang 2023.
Before the event, the championship predictions revolved around names like Victor Chepkwony, Kenyan runner or Trinh Quoc Luong. However, the highest place belonged to Hiroki Nakajima, a runner from Japan who attended the MetaSports Marathon for the first time, not a professional athlete in his hometown, nor registered for an official race for a long time.
Hiroki Nakajima attracted attention from the first km when he easily surpassed the Kenyan athlete as well as the top of the Vietnamese athletes. Victor Chepkwony or Quoc Luong, even with full speed, could not keep up with Nakajima's speed.
He was also impressed by his rare cavalier demeanor. Unlike high-achieving athletes who often focus entirely on each step of the run, Hiroki Nakajima greets cheering groups or photographers with a smile, ready to raise his hand to pose. On the livestream channel, the audience continuously cheered him on, but many people left comments wondering who this athlete was.
Leading the way, Hiroki Nakajima had no rival when he was a few hundred meters away from the Kenyan athlete and the Vietnamese group of athletes by a few kilometers, reaching the finish line after more than 2 hours and 33 minutes. Chepkwony finished second and Quoc Luong finished third. Both were quite tired when they reached the finish line. Trinh Quoc Luong took off his shoes on the run, withdrew with bare feet and had to be supported by someone behind the finish line because of foot pain.
In addition to the biggest surprise mentioned above, the remaining items are mostly as expected. The 42km women's championship belongs to Kenyan runner, Shelmith Muriuki, who also finished 42km at the MetaSports Marathon Quy Nhon two months earlier. "The race was quite difficult. I wanted to run for 2 hours and 30 minutes but the slope was too much so I was a bit tired. Anyway I am happy to win the tournament. Thank you to the organizers for the successful tournament and no points to criticize." she said.
The men's and women's 21km champions are Do Quoc Luat and Nguyen Thi Phuong Trinh, respectively. With this tournament, Do Quoc Luat became the most successful athlete at the MetaSports Marathon if you include the 42km champion at VM Ha Long 2022. Nguyen Thi Phuong Trinh has just won the women's 21km at the MetaSports Marathon HCMC Midnight at the beginning of the year. Twin brothers Dao Minh Thien and Dao Minh Chi shared the 5 and 10km championships.
The other surprise factor also belongs to a Japanese female athlete, Tomomi Nakajima who finished second in the women's 42km. She is the wife of the Japanese male athlete who won the 42km distance mentioned above.
MetaSports Marathon Marvelous Nha Trang 2023 is the marathon festival of Khanh Hoa province with a record number of athletes - 11,000 people, a significant increase compared to 8,500 people in 2022.
As one of the most beautiful coastal running tracks in Vietnam, VM Nha Trang is loved by the runner community for its many unique features. The tournament takes runners through the most beautiful roads in the city such as Pham Van Dong and Tran Phu, conquering a part of the majestic Luong Son pass to watch the sunrise on the sea.
At 3 am, thousands of 42km runners started their journey to conquer the track. The distances 21, 10 and 5km respectively start at 4h, 5h and 5h15 respectively. In which, the distance of 21km is the most crowded. The runners at the end of the line take up to 4 minutes to cross the starting line. The day of the competition the weather was quite hot, the temperature was about 28 degrees Celsius. To support the runners, the organizers increased the number of water stations, health stations and toilets.
Besides the professional mark, MetaSports Marathon Marvelous Nha Trang left many beautiful impressions. More than 11,000 athletes create a colorful weekend morning on the coastal city of Nha Trang. The organizers arranged 35 photographers to capture every memorable moment of the athlete. Images are constantly updated on the website of MetaSports Marathon. Athletes can find photos by Bib number or face here, find Video of the finish here.
After reaching the finish line, all eligible athletes received medals bearing the seal of the coastal city with a shell-shaped design, the image of her tower and Tram Huong tower. Runners can also enjoy many dishes, beer, sausages, drinks, fruits at the food court. This year, this area will add more stalls selling local specialties, introducing Khanh Hoa's culture to friends at home and abroad.
The prize ended with an award ceremony with a total value of 1.5 billion VND. Cash prizes increased compared to previous prizes. After Nha Trang, MetaSports Marathon continues to Ha Long, Hanoi and Hai Phong.
