The Vietnamese version of BBC's popular reality singing contest Just the Two of Us will air on Viet Nam Television (VTV) this month. Cap Doi Hoan Hao, produced by VTV and the Cat Tien Sa Media and Television Company, pairs eight famous singers with celebrities, who each week sing in duets in eight shows from October 9 to December 4. The contest will feature Vietnamese celebrities including MC Tran Thanh, actors Quach Ngoc Ngoan, Kim Thu and Le Khanh, models Ha Anh and Phan Le Ai Phuong, scriptwriter and actor Dinh Tien Dung, and bodybuilder Pham Van Mach. The celebrities will team up with popular singers Doan Trang, Ngoc Anh, Dam Vinh Hung, Minh Quan, Noo Phuoc Thinh, Phuong Linh, Van Mai Huong, and Ho Trung Dung. The duets will perform songs in various genres like pop, rock, hip hop and country. The judges and the votes of the audiences will decide the elimination, which will begin in the third show. The winning duets will receive VND200 million (US$9,500) awards, … [Read more...]

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung stressed Viet Nam's consistent policy to strengthen and develop the long traditional friendship and multi-faceted co-operation with Uzbekistan while meeting with Uzbek President Islam Karimov in Tashkent yesterday , Oct 3. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung meets with Uzbek President Islam Karimov in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. (Photo: VNS) He proposed that the two countries continue to enhance exchanges of high-level delegations to increase mutual understanding and create momentum to promote multi-faceted co-operation. For his part, President Karimov agreed that the two countries should continue promoting co-operation in various fields, including trade, automobile manufacturing and oil and gas. He praised the effective operation of the Viet Nam National Oil and Gas Group in Uzbekistan and affirmed his support for the two countries' co-operation in this field. PM Dung discussed a wide range of measures to boost multifaceted co-operation based on … [Read more...]

A gala night featuring Vietnamese culture, tourism and commercial products will be held in New Delhi on November 2. The event, which is expected to attract around 1,000 participants, will be in the framework of the Asian Advertising Congress (AdAsia) 2011, to be held in the Indian capital between October 31 and November 3. Viet Nam will host the 28th congress in 2013, which is estimated to gather up to 1,500 representatives from 16 countries and territories, who are members of the Asian Federation of Advertising Associations. Started in 1958 with some 100 delegates, of which only eight were from five other Asian countries, AdAsia is now a biennial event. The federation was formed to unify all Asian associations involved in the various aspects of advertising; to upgrade standards, ethics and practices of advertising; to bring a more meaningful contribution from advertising activities to both regional and national socio-economic development; to set up the necessary mechanism for … [Read more...]

Striker Nguyen Thi Hoa scored a hattrick to help Viet Nam win 4-0 over hosts Laos yesterday, Oct 18, at the second group round match of the Southeast Asian (AFF) Women's Football Championship at the National Stadium in Vientiane. Huynh Nhu needed only 73 seconds to scored the first goal for Viet Nam after Lao goalkeeper Hongthong Choulapanh received a red card. Her early leave left a big hole in the hosts' defence which Nhu easily broke through and earned her goal. Hoa then doubled the lead seven minutes later from the left. The striker dribbled past two defenders before slotting her first goal past substitute keeper Bounyong Akhavong. Viet Nam had several chances to add to the score and struck the crossbar three times before finally getting the third and fourth goals off the sharpening Hoa in the 29th and 33rd minutes. Viet Nam were comfortable going into the second half and did not push as hard as they had done in the first 45 minutes. Nevertheless, they hit the posts and … [Read more...]

Viet Nam beat Singapore 9-1 in their first Group A match of the Southeast Asian Women's Football Championship in Laos on Sunday. Striker Nguyen Thi Hoa contributed four goals to the Vietnamese team coached by China's Chen Yun Fat. Huynh Nhu also helped herself to a hat-trick. The team will meet the hosts Laos today and Indonesia on Thursday. Thailand , Myanmar, Malaysia and the Philippines are competing in Group B. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals on Sunday. The tournament will conclude on October 25. * Injury keeps Hao out of VFF Cup U23 midfielder Thanh Hao will miss the Viet Nam Football Federation (VFF) -Eximbank Cup because of an ankle injury. Hao suffered the injury during a friendly on Saturday between the U23s and former V-League champions Ha Noi T&T, which they won 4-0. Following tests, team doctor Tran Anh Tuan said the injury was not very serious but he needed to rest at least one week before training again. The … [Read more...]

VietNamNet Bridge - Viet Nam took the lead at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Vovinam Championships in Cambodia over the weekend, with nine gold and 10 silver medals.Medal haul: Vietnamese martial artists perform during a team event. The national team took the lead at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Vovinam Championships in Cambodia over the weekend. (Photo: VNS) Vovinam is a Vietnamese martial art and is popular in over 35 countries and territories around the world, with hundreds of thousands of followers. National Vovinam federations have been established in many countries, including France, Spain, Italy, Romania, Australia, the US, Switzerland, Germany and Morocco.Indonesia are in second with five golds and five silvers, while hosts Cambodia are third with three gold, five silver and one bronze medal.The pre-SEA Games tournament, which is also the first event ever organised by the SEA Vovinam Federation and the Cambodia Olympics Committee, has attracted 63 martial artists from Indonesia, Laos, … [Read more...]

Vietnamese athletes are set to compete in 36 sporting events for a top three spot at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, the largest regional sporting event of its kind, in Indonesia next month. Viet Nam has also set its sights on martial arts events including vovinam, karate, wushu, taekwondo and judo. Head of the national squad, Lam Quang Thanh, told reporters at a press conference yesterday that Viet Nam would do its utmost at the SEA Games against powerhouses including Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and the hosts to bag at least 70 gold medals. "Vietnamese athletes will compete at the SEA Games to promote solidarity, friendship and development within ASEAN," Thanh said. "One of the toughest tasks will belong to the men's under-23 football team in its quest for top honours," he added, saying that the SEA Games will be a crucial test for Vietnamese athletes ahead of next year's London Olympics. Viet Nam has also set its sights on martial arts events including vovinam, … [Read more...]

Viet Nam's footballers yesterday, Oct 20, avoided being drawn in the ‘dead group' at the coming 26th Southeast Asian Games in Jarkata, Indonesia. As favourites of Group B, the national U-23 team will compete against the Philippines, Myanmar, East Timor, Brunei and Laos. Group A, in turn, will consist of defending champions and favourites Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, including its host of international players, and underdogs Cambodia. "While Viet Nam, the highest FIFA ranked team at the event, is set to advance without much opposition, nothing comes for free," said football expert Nguyen Van Vinh, backed up by Ha Noi coach Nguyen Thanh Vinh who added that the semi-final stage would be the most difficult. As the runner-up team from the last Games, Viet Nam has also been seeded second at this year's tournament. During the groups stages, the country's toughest challenge is set to be Myanmar, who it beat 5-0 during the first match of the VFF-Eximbank Cup in Ha … [Read more...]

Ten South Korean travel agents attended a conference and art performance in Ha Noi last Friday to promote their country's tourism potential. During the event, the agents introduced MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition) tours, developed with high economic efficiency throughout South Korea. An exhibition on Seoul, Daejeon and Jeju travel took place alongside the seminar while Korean culture and dancing was presented during a MICE night. Over the past five years, the number of Vietnamese tourists to South Korea had doubled while Viet Nam promised to become a key tourism market in the near future, said Sim Hye-ryun, a representative of the Korean Tourism Organisation in Viet Nam. South Korea , in co-operation with Viet Nam, is voting for both Jeju Island and Ha Long Bay to become two of the seven new natural wonders of the world. * Vietnam Airlines adds nearly 850 flights for Tet The national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, has announced it will arrange an … [Read more...]

Viet Nam's footballers yesterday, Oct 19, avoided being drawn in the 'dead group' at the coming 26th Southeast Asian Games in Jarkata, Indonesia. As part of Group B, the national team will compete against the Philippines, Myanmar, East Timor, Brunei and Laos. Group A, in turn, consists of defending champions Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Cambodia. As the first runner-up team from the last Games, Viet Nam has been seeded second at this year's tournament. The country's toughest challenge is set to be Myanmar, who it beat 0-5 during the first match of the VFF Cup in Ha Noi yesterday. The two sides will meet again on November 5. SEA organisers also set up a futsal (indoor football) event yesterday in which Viet Nam will play the Philippines and Indonesia in Group A while Thailand, Malaysia and Myanmar battle it out in Group B. Liem leads group A in Spice Cup after draw with Frenchman Feller Viet Nam 's top chess player Le Quang Liem drew with Sebastien … [Read more...]