What's special about the 2024 Ho Chi Minh City Night Run?

The Ho Chi Minh City night race will meet AIMS standards, stretching from the center through a series of iconic buildings and conquering bridges over the Saigon River.

The second edition of VPBank VnExpress Marathon Ho Chi Minh City Midnight will take place on March 3, and is expected to attract 11,000 runners. This year, the official race course is expected to be adjusted and improved, but will still retain the same characteristics as last season, ensuring a running experience combined with exploring Ho Chi Minh City at night.

Continue to have AIMS standards

Last year, the race course in Ho Chi Minh City was certified by the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) for all four distances. This year, AIMS experts are expected to come to Ho Chi Minh City at the end of January to measure the new course. The organizing committee will officially announce the race course after receiving AIMS certification.

Athletes of VPBank VnExpress Marathon Ho Chi Minh City Midnight can therefore use the results of the competition on March 3 as part of the criteria for submitting applications to participate in the world's top marathons such as in Boston, Chicago, New York, Berlin,...

According to AIMS, the race track in Ho Chi Minh City helps runners feel the vibrant, energetic pace of life in the country's largest economic center. In addition, with ideal early spring weather and a road with few slopes, VPBank VnExpress Marathon Ho Chi Minh City Midnight also creates conditions for runners to break through and achieve PR.

Athletes start at Tao Dan park area. Photo: VM

A new feature of the Ho Chi Minh City Night Run and all other VnExpress Marathons this year is that the results of the 42km runners will be sent to Abbott World Marathon Majors Wanda. The results will be compiled with the athletes worldwide in the Abbott WMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings. Qualified athletes in each age group will be invited to participate in the 2025 World Championship.

Challenge with bridges

Bridges are an integral part of the river culture of Ho Chi Minh City and are also an interesting challenge on the journey of VnExpress Marathon runners. The race course will take runners across many bridges. Most of these are small bridges, spanning canals and streams, with low slopes on the Thu Thiem peninsula. The most challenging are the two bridges spanning the Saigon River (Thu Thiem, Ba Son, ...).

With a distance of 42km, the bridges will be concentrated mostly in the second half of the race. Starting with Ba Son Bridge connecting the center of District 1 with Thu Duc City. The bridge is about 1.5km long including the approach road, with a moderate slope. Last year, the runners poured onto the bridge from the arc-shaped approach road on Ton Duc Thang Street. After crossing the bridge, the runners went to Thu Thiem area with many slopes and small bridges in succession. Before reaching the finish line, the runners crossed Thu Thiem Bridge, about 1.2km, slightly more gentle than Ba Son Bridge.

Runner running on Ba Son bridge. Photo: VM

Many runners who participated in the first season said that when they started climbing Ba Son Bridge, they were caught up in the desire to conquer the large group and increased their speed. This led to the runners later losing strength when they crossed many bridges in Thu Thiem Peninsula, missing their target. According to experienced runners, to ensure they compete on target, runners should save their strength in the first half. When starting to climb Ba Son Bridge, the best way is to reduce their pace. Runners will compensate by running faster when going downhill.

For amateur athletes who do not care about achievements, the bridges will be an interesting experience when seeing the whole city from above. Athletes can completely slow down to enjoy the city's night scene.

Race through many famous places

VPBank VnExpress Marathon Ho Chi Minh City Midnight is like a night tour, taking athletes through a series of famous streets and iconic buildings of the city.

Starting from Tao Dan Park, runners of all distances will run through central streets of District 1 such as Le Duan, Dong Khoi, Nguyen Hue, Ton Duc Thang. Along the way are constructions such as Independence Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, Opera House, People's Committee headquarters, Ben Bach Dang Park,... These are all constructions associated with history, with unique architecture and beautiful lighting systems at night.

Runner running on the walking street. Photo: VM

In addition to the long-standing symbols, athletes can also admire the areas that symbolize the rise and modernity of the country's largest economic center. The third tallest skyscraper in Ho Chi Minh City is being completed right at the foot of Ba Son Bridge, the new urban area of Thu Thiem, and the apartment buildings close together in Tan Cang - Ba Son are highlights of the journey.

VPBank VnExpress Marathon Ho Chi Minh City Midnight 2024 opens registration from January 3. Runners who register to buy Bib early will receive a discount on price. Register to run here.

Hoai Phuong

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