Vietnam’s cycling mark at the 2025 Asian championship

Vietnam’s cycling mark at the 2025 Asian championship

The Vietnamese cycling team has overcome many difficulties to compete at the 2025 Asian championship. Although there are still regrets, the athletes’ achievements are commendable.

As of February 15, two gold medals of the Asian championship of Vietnamese cycling came from age-group categories. These are medals for amateur and semi-professional athletes, over 40 for women, and over 60 for men.

“Just get on the saddle and receive the prize”

Entering the 6th day of competition, the Vietnamese cycling team has high expectations for medals when many athletes are highly appreciated, including Pham Minh Nhan, Truong Thi Quynh, Hoang Thi Hang, To Hoang Khanh Lan. The athletes compete in the women’s mass start event.

The Vietnamese riders kept a good distance in the first stretch, sticking close to the top. In the final meters, To Hoang Khanh Lan, with an extremely impressive sprint, was the first to cross the finish line, winning the gold medal. This is the second gold medal of the Vietnamese road cycling team at this year’s tournament.

If you have been following Khanh Lan’s training and competition over the past time, no one will be surprised by the remarkable maturity of this resilient and courageous woman. There are few cyclists, both professional and amateur, who have “fallen in love” with cycling since 2022 but “just get on the saddle and receive the prize” – as this 47-year-old female athlete proudly said.

Few people know that Khanh Lan used to be a bodybuilder, winning many national competitions, even the 2018 World Gold Medal. But she decided to “turn” to cycling. “With a good health foundation and a reasonable diet and training regimen, even as an amateur cyclist, I always ranked high in every tournament,” Khanh Lan revealed her secret.

After winning the Asian cycling gold medal, Khanh Lan trained again to prepare for the 2025 tournaments. She said: “I will not give up bodybuilding for cycling, my passion for more than 20 years. I am determined to defend my 2 bodybuilding gold medals at the 2025 National Championship and beyond, strive to complete the goal of participating in the 2026 National Sports Festival and become the only athlete to participate in 6 consecutive congresses as well as win the championship in all 6 congresses”.

Achievement of the 61-year-old “veteran”

Previously, 61-year-old cyclist Hoang Hai Nam excellently won the gold medal in the individual time trial for men over 60 years old. The first time that a representative of Vietnamese amateur cycling “brought the bell to strike in a foreign land” became a memorable memory for this cyclist. Because he competed in the individual time trial, Mr. Nam went to Thailand early while the remaining group of 8 amateur athletes competed later. His racing bike and equipment were traveling in the same truck with the equipment of the Vietnamese team and were completely burned.

Thanks to the active support from the host country Thailand, “veteran” Hoang Hai Nam was loaned bike, helmet, water bottle, and specialized racing shoes, the Thai side only lent a suitable pair 1 hour before the competition. But the challenge was not over for the Vietnamese cyclist. Just when he was relieved to have all the necessary equipment to compete, Mr. Nam encountered another problem when the number given to him by the Organizing Committee to race was different from the number on the starting list.

Overcoming difficulties, excellently winning the gold medal, cyclist Hai Nam shared his feelings: “Thank you for the feelings that the Vietnamese delegation as well as the fans have encouraged and shared with me and the Vietnamese cycling team this time. I am very happy with the special gold medal in a tournament that I cannot forget”.

Nguyen Thi That at the Asian Championship

Also on February 15, cyclist Nguyen Thi That and the Vietnamese cycling team competed in the most anticipated event, the 105.7km joint start. Nguyen Thi That was considered a strong candidate for the gold medal as she had won the Asian championship three times in 2018, 2022, and 2023.

Nguyen Thi That was in the leading group to compete for first place. She and her “rival” Jutatip of the host country closely followed. When 3km from the finish line, the Thai team took the initiative to take the lead, acting as a tractor to support Jutatip to demonstrate her sprinting skills

100m from the finish line, Nguyen Thi That was in a bad position so she did not get off the bike as expected. Meanwhile, Jutatip had passed the An Giang athlete by half a bike, winning the gold medal. Nguyen Thi That won the silver medal, which was a pity.

At this year’s Asian Championship, Nguyen Thi encountered an obstacle when her racing car was burned down while traveling from Bangkok to the competition venue. Her old car was brought from Vietnam in time, which helped her feel a bit more secure. In addition, the 31-year-old racer from An Giang also had a sore throat and had to stop practicing during the first days in Thailand.

READ MORE:

– The 2025 trans-Vietnam cycling race route is nearly as long as the Tour de France

– Hanoi honored as one of the world’s top 25 cultural destinations

– 48 Hours Admiring White Plum Blossoms in Lao Cai

–  Northern Vietnam Tours