VTM course records broken in double French victory at VTM
Double victories for France in the ultra distances.
Vietnam Trail Marathon welcomed more than 4,000 runners from 40 nations on the blossom-filled trails of Moc Chau. This 6th edition of Vietnam Trail Marathon has grown to become one of the largest mountain runs in Vietnam, runners raced up to 70k on beautiful terrain.
The 70km race
The winner of the men’s 70km race was Valentin Orange, from France with a course record time of 07:01:40. The previous fastest time of was held by Quang Tran. This record is particularly impressive as the updated course has two significantly harder sections.
He shared “Perfect conditions, absolutely stunning scenery, lovely locals. Moc Chau is definitely a unique race. The plan was to attempt to break the course record and try to run under 7h. I gave up both challenges half way through when I was 8min late from my target time feeling quite exhausted. But I somehow managed to keep up the pace despite heavy legs when going uphill, which is usually my strength. I pushed hard in the last 5k when I realized that finishing close to 7h was doable. Very happy to bring home another buffalo, before going back to France in a few weeks”
The second male and third male were Nguyễn Sĩ Hiếu and Nguyễn Đức Tuấn Anh from Vietnam with the same time of 08:05:28.
The women’s champion was Leslie Nowicki of France, who also broke the course record. She clocked the time of 8:25:16, beating the previous time of 09:01:45 held by Vietnam’s Ha Hau. Leslie led from the start, taking the lead from multiple Vietnam Trail Series champ, Vanja Cnops.
“The course was absolutely beautiful and the trails were great,” she shared. “The atmosphere here is so warm and welcoming. The people are so, so friendly. All the race crew on the checkpoints were excellent, and the local people along the course were so smiley and welcoming, giving high fives along the way. Everything was organised perfectly. We loved being part of this race. And now we will go to Halong Bay and Hanoi to enjoy more of Vietnam.”
The second place went to Vanja Cnops from Belgium, with the finish time of 8:48:38.
The third place was Akane Nemoto from Japan, with the total time of 10:06:35.
VTM 42k
The 42k men’s race was won by Trịnh Nam Hải from Việt Nam with the total time of 04:46:05. The second place went to Harry Wager from New Zealand with the finish time of 04:49:42. Phạm Văn Hùng from Việt Nam took third place in a time of 05:00:29.
The female 42k champion was Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Anh with the total time of just 05:26:16 closely followed by Phạm Thị Hồng Lệ with just 05:34:34. The third female was Trần Duyên with 05:35:07. All these three amazing women are from Vietnam.
VTM 21k
The top 3 female 21k runners were Lẻo Thị Tình and Phạm Thị Vân Anh from Vietnam, with 02:28:35 and 02:53:09, and Rachel Clissold from Australia with the finish time of 02:56:17.
The second place and the third place were Nguyễn Xuân Tú from Vietnam, with 02:10:56 and Stephen Anthony Barkey Ireland, running for Blue Dragon with the total time of 02:24:05.
The top 3 female 21k runners were Lèo Thị Tình and Phạm Thị Vân Anh from Vietnam, with 02:28:35 and 02:53:09, and Rachel Clissold from Australia with the finish time of 02:56:17.
VTM 10k
The male champion of VTM 10k was Hồ Minh Tứ, Việt Nam, with just 00:49:34.
The second male went to Nguyễn Thành Trung with 00:51:19 and the male male was Vũ Tiến Việt Dũng, 00:51:20, both from Vietnam.
The female category of VTM 10k was dominated by Vietnam, with the first place went to Nguyễn Thị Ánh Tuyết, 00:57:03, following by Đèo Thị My and Quàng Diệp Hoài with just 01:01:55.
Running to the finish line of VTM 2024, we also saw some celebrity runners. Actress Nguyen Lam Thao Tam ran 10k. She shared: “It’s my first time joining a running event, and I was so impressed by the beauty and warm welcome of local people in Moc Chau. Surely, I will come join with more of my friends!”
Pham Ngoc Phuong Anh – First runner-up in Miss Vietnam 2020 also was running 21k. Phuong Anh said: “I heard a lot about VTS races, and decided to join VTM because of the beauty of Moc Chau in blooming season. The race was professionally organized with beautiful trails, moderate level and a rich variety of food and drinks at Checkpoints. For me, this is the momentum to participate in future races organized by Topas.”
Charity
Every Vietnam Trail Series race by Topas contributes money to charitable work. The money raised from Vietnam Trail Marathon 2024 brings the total series amount to around USD445,000.
On race weekend, much needed medical equipment to treat critically ill newborn babies was formally presented to the local Moc Chau hospital by representatives of the race organizer, Topas together with Newborns Vietnam.
Furthermore, over 50 disadvantaged kids and their support staff from Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation were being fully supported to take part by organizer, Topas. The kids were brought from Hanoi to enjoy a night in Moc Chau before joining the race, adding further meaning to the event.
The next Topas – Vietnam Trail Series race will be the 1st edition of Vietnam Ultra Marathon – The Trails of Mai Chau, on March 23 2024. Learn more about Vietnam Ultra Marathon 2024.
