High-jumper Nguyen Duy Bang, holder of the national record of 2.25m, won the gold after clearing the bar at 2.15m. Bang’s success will almost certainly entitle him to a place in the national team for the upcoming 25^th SEA Games in Laos this December. He can compete for a silver medal at SEA Games.

Three new national records were also set in HCM City. Long-jumper Nguyen Van Hung reached 16.37m to shatter his own record of 15.92m, which was set in the national Junior Athletics Championships in Hue a year ago. In the women’s 5,000m race walk, 19-year-old Nguyen Thanh Phuc set a new national record after clocking a time of 25:00.12, surpassing her own previous record of 25:26.01, which she set last year. Meanwhile, Hoang Van Thiem, 20, was clocked at 46:36.75 in the men’s 10,000m event, breaking Phan Van Tam’s record of 47:10.36, which he set in Hue.

The two-day tournament attracted 507 athletics from the Republic of Korea (RoK), Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

The RoK came second with seven golds, one silver and three bronzes. Indonesia finished third with four golds, five silves and one bronze.