Vietnamese swimmers to be challenged at world championships

“Little mermaid” Nguyen Thi Anh Vien will join her male teammates Hoang Quy Phuoc, Lam Quang Nhat and Tran Duy Khoi to represent Vietnam at the 16th FINA World Championships, to be held in Kazan, Russia from August 2 to 9.

Vietnam’s swimming star Nguyen Thi Anh Vien (Credit: vnexpress.net)

The week-long tournament will bring together most of the world’s best athletes, offering a good opportunity for Vietnamese swimmers to test their abilities and seek more 2016 Olympic berths, alongside the single ticket secured earlier by Anh Vien.

Vietnam’s major hopes continue to be pinned on Anh Vien, who recently struck the regional swimming circle with a sparkling collection of eight gold medals and eight individual records at the 28th SEA Games in Singapore. The 18-year-old has also cleared three A standards for the Rio Olympics in the women’s 200m medley, 400m freestyle and 400m medley disciplines.

Vien will compete in the 200m and 400m medley, 200m freestyle and 200m backstroke events, targeting to make the finals of either of her two favourites, 200m backstroke and 400m medley.

The other athletes, Quy Phuoc, Quang Nhat and Duy Khoi have already surpassed the B standards for the 2016 Olympics in the men’s 100m and 200m freestyle, 1,500m freestyle and 200m medley respectively. The upcoming world championships will provide an ideal platform for them to conquer the A standards to book their places in Brazil next summer.

Vietnam has already secured four official tickets to the 2016 Rio Olympics so far, going to Tran Quoc Cuong and Hoang Xuan Vinh (shooting), Nguyen Thi Huyen (athletics) and Nguyen Thi Anh Vien (swimming). The country has targeted to win 16-18 berths at the Games.

(Source: nhandan.org.vn)