Young pole vaulter to launch into SEA

The young vaulter has replaced Le Thi Phuong, the incumbent SEA record holder who recently retired from competition to focus o­n her studies at the Sports College.

Lan, from the northern province of Yen Bai, snatched the silver medal at the National Sports Games in HCM City last September, clearing the bar at a height of 3.5m. The pint sized recruit was called up to the national team for training o­n Monday, in Hanoi.

According to pole vault and decathlon coach Vu Duc Nguyen, Lan, 18, has a god given talent for the sport and she expects to get her to do well at the SEA Games, assuming training goes according to plan.

"Lan showed her quality during training for the Asian Athletics Federation last December. However, she needs a little time to hone her skills with experts in the field before the Games," Nguyen said.

"Clearing the bar at 3.5m o­n debut is a great start for a youngster, we expect to build o­n that in the future," said the coach.

Head of athletics of the Committee of Sports and Physical Culture Duong Duc Thuy, said the team will travel to China to train in an effort to improve their technique before the commencement of the Games.