Nguyen Trung Cuong beat strong rivals to win Taiwan Athletics Open gold
VGP – SEA Games champion Nguyen Trung Cuong dominated the men's 3,000m steeplechase event at the Taiwan Athletics Open on June 1 in Chinese Taipei.
Nguyen Trung Cuong of Viet Nam brings home gold in the men's 3,000m steeplechase at the 2024 Taiwan Athletics Open.
Cuong overcame 15 strong rivals to finish first in a time of 9min 6.93sec and took gold medal.
He was followed by Sukarya Pandu of Indonesia, who timed 9:10.14, and Lin Zhewei of the hosts, who clocked 9:14.90.
Born in 2000 in Ha Tinh Province, Cuong lured people's attention when he secured a bronze in the 3,000m steeplechase at the 2018 Asian Youth Athletics Championship and qualified for the world youth competition in Finland. He did not enter top three but set new national record of 8:51.16.
After two years struggling with personal problem and injuries, Cuong was back in the limelight after beating multi-time SEA Games champion Nguyen Van Lai in the 2022 National Sports Games (NSG) men's 5,000m event and set a new national record of 14:33.54.
At the 32nd SEA Games, he successfully won gold in the 3,000m steeplechase.
Prior to Cuong, Bui Thi Ngan took the first gold for Viet Nam in the women's 1,500m event.
She maintained in the top-two position in most time of the race before sped up in the last 100m meters to cross the finish line first in a time of 4:21.68.
Gayanthika Thushari Artigala Aberathna of Sri Lanka was second on 4:24.66 and Ri Song Hui of North Korea third on 4:32.95.
Ngan, 21, has been running for about nine years. Despite studying information technology at the Ha Noi Open University, Ngan still dedicated and gave time for the running tracks.
She is the defending champion of the NSG's 800m event and won two silvers in the 800m and 1,500m at the 32nd SEA Games in her regional sporting event debut.
In other activities in Chinese Taipei, Huynh Thi My Tien placed sixth in the women's 100m hurdles and Vu Duc Anh was eighth in the men's high jump.
On June 2, athletes will take part in other events. Ngan and teammate Nguyen Thi Thu Ha are expected to shine in the 800m event as they are first and second finishers at the Cambodian SEA Games.
Cuong and his runner-up Luong Duc Phuoc will hunt gold in the men's 5,000m.
Quach Cong Lich and younger sister Quach Thi Lan will race in the men's and women's 400m hurdles.
All eyes will on the women's 4x400m team who are asked to run faster than 3min 27.29sec to enter world top 16 to qualify for the Paris Games./.
