Vinh advances to shooting finals, Huệ to compete in rowing repechage

Trịnh Thu Vinh qualifies for the finals of the women’s 10m air pistol event at the Paris Olympics on July 27. Photo of Việt Nam Sports Team

PARIS — Trịnh Thu Vinh has successfully earned a place in the finals of the women’s 10m air pistol event at the 33rd Olympic Games on July 27 in Paris, France.

The Asian mixed pair champion scored 578 points after six 10-shot series, ranking fourth in the qualification round.

Vinh is one of only three shooters to achieve a perfect 100 points during the competition and the only one among the eight finalists.

The finals will be held on July 28 at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre, where she will compete against powerhouses from Hungary, South Korea, China, India, and Turkey.

Vinh is one of Việt Nam’s medal hopes at these Games.

At the Rio Games in 2016, her senior Hoàng Xuân Vinh won Việt Nam’s first-ever gold in this event for men.

In other activities, rower Phạm Thị Huệ still has an opportunity to reach the finals after her fourth-place finish in the women’s single sculls heat at the Paris Olympics on July 27.

Organisers divided 32 athletes into six heats, and Huệ was in the fifth heat against four rivals, competing over a distance of 2,000m. The first three in each heat qualify for the semi-finals, while the remainder move to the repechage.

The Vietnamese rower was among the top three in the first 1,000m, following Alexandra Foester of Germany and Desislava Angelova of Bulgaria.

Phạm Thị Huệ will find her Olympic final opportunity from the repechage round on July 28. VNA/VNS Photo

However, the SEA Games champion could not maintain her performance over the remaining distance and was overtaken by Diana Dymchenko of Azerbaijan. She finished fourth with a time of 8 minutes 3.84 seconds and will row in the repechage on July 28.

The repechage offers athletes who were knocked out in the early rounds a second chance to qualify for later matches.

Hoàng Thị Tình cannot pass strong rival Oumaima Bedioui of Tunisia in the first round of the women’s 48kg class in judo competition. VNA/VNS Photo

Earlier, judoka Hoàng Thị Tình was eliminated from the Paris Olympics after a 0-1 defeat in the women’s 48kg category.

Despite her efforts, Tình, ranked world No. 86, lost 0-1 to Tunisian Oumaima Bedioui, ranked No. 38, in the last-16 round.

On July 26, Việt Nam Olympic Committee President Nguyễn Văn Hùng visited the Vietnamese delegation at the Athletes’ Village.

Hùng, who is also the Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, expressed his pleasure at seeing all athletes and coaches in good condition and ready for their tournaments.

He urged them to maintain good health and quickly adapt to the climate, time zone, food, and competition schedules to ensure their best results in Paris.

Việt Nam Olympic Committee President Nguyễn Văn Hùng (sixth, left) presents bonuses to Vietnamese athletes for their Olympic participants. VNS Photo Thu Sâm

“Earning your Olympic spots is already a great achievement. You should give your best to bring victories home and enjoy your success,” Hùng told the athletes.

He also presented each Olympic competitor with a bonus of VNĐ20 million as an encouragement for their efforts.

In other Olympic news, Chinese marksmen Sheng Lihao and Huang Yuting won the first gold medal of the Paris Games on July 27.

Chinese pair compete during the 10m air rifle mixed team gold medal match againt South Korea. They take the first gold of the Paris Olympic Games. XINHUA/VNA Photo

They defeated South Koreans Keum Jihyeon and Park Hajun 16-12 in the mixed team 10m air rifle event. Kazakhstan’s Alexandra Le and Islam Satpayev secured the bronze.

In other news, Iraqi judoka Sajjad Sehen is the first athlete to test positive for doping at the Paris Olympics, according to the International Testing Agency (ITA).

The ITA reports that Sehen’s sample returned an adverse analytical finding for the non-specified prohibited substances metandienone and boldenone, which are classified as S1 Anabolic Androgenic Steroids on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) prohibited list.

His sample was collected by the ITA under the testing and results management authority of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) during an out-of-competition anti-doping control on July 23 in Paris. The result was reported by the WADA-accredited laboratory in Paris on July 25.

The 28-year-old has been informed of the case and has been provisionally suspended from all activities during the 2024 Olympics. He has the right to challenge the imposition of the provisional suspension before the Court of Arbitration for Sport – Anti-Doping Division and request the analysis of the B-sample. — VNS