Vietnamese swimmer breaks 8th records at SEA Games

Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, 19, competes at the Southeast Asian Games in Singapore. Photo: Ngo Nguyen

Nguyen Thi Anh Vien won her 7th gold medal at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games on Wednesday to break records for the 8th time at the regional event.

The 19-year-old swimmer from the Mekong Delta province of Can Tho finished with 4m08s66 in women’s 400m freestyle, breaking a record of 4m10s75 set by Malaysia’s Khoo Cai Lin at the 2009 SEA Games in Laos.

So far, Vien won seven gold medals at the event, including in 200m freestyle, 400m freestyle, 800m freestyle, 200m butterfly, 200m backstroke, 200m individual medley and 400m individual medley.

She also won a silver medal in 100m freestyle and a bronze in 50m backstroke. Vien set a record of a Vietnamese athlete with highest medal at SEA Games.

15 gold medals a day

Besides a gold medal by Anh Vien, Vietnamese athletes bagged 14 other gold medals to help Vietnam regains its second place from the medals table from Thailand.

In swimming, Lam Quang Nhat won a gold medal in men’s 1500m with 37m31s03, breaking record set by Philippines’ Ryan Arabejo set at the 2009 SEA Games in Laos.

Wednesday was a golden day for Vietnamese athletes with five gold in athletics.

Le Trong Hinh won a gold medal in men’s 200m sprinting with 20m89, while Duong Van Thai won a gold in men’s 800m with 1m51s43.

Do Thi Thao won a gold medal in women’s 800m with 2m05s22.

Nguyen Van Hue won a gold medal in men’s decathlon with 7,232 points.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Thi Huyen set a new record in women’s 400m hurdle with 56s15. Previous record was 56s78 set by Thailand’s Srithoa Reawadee in 1995.

Vietnamese athlete Nguyen Thi Huyen (344) sets a new SEA Games record in women’s 400m hurdle in Singapore on June 10, 2015. Photo: Kha Hoa

The other gold medals were claimed by Hoang Quang Trung in Pencak Silat, Truong Dinh Hoang and Le Thi Bang in boxing and three others in gymnastics, won by Dinh Phuong Thanh in men’s horizontal bar, Phan Thi Ha Thanh in women’s beam and Le Thanh Tung in men’s vault.

By the end of the fifth day, Vietnam surpassed Thailand to rank second with 48 golds, 23 silvers and 44 bronzes. The host Singapore maintains its first position with 60 golds, 51 silvers and 64 bronzes.

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