Ma Minh Cam and Do Nguyen Trung Hau have brilliantly coursed through the last qualifying round to join Tran Quyet Chien, Ngo Dinh Nai and Nguyen Quoc Nguyen as the five Vietnamese representatives in the main draw of the ongoing Carom Billiard 3-Cushion World Cup in Porto, Portugal.
Vietnamese cueist Ma Minh Cam.
The fourth qualification stage brought together 36 players who
competed in a round robin tournament in 12 groups to determine the 12 group
winners and the three best second-place finishers for the main tournament,
which already features 17 wild-card holders, including three from Vietnam.
Ma Minh Cam claimed Group F’s
top spot in style by stunning reigning Blankenberge World Cup champion, Javier
Palazon, and Jerome Barbeillon, both from France, with respective scores of
40-28 and 40-33. Meanwhile, Do Nguyen Trung Hau won Group E with two convincing
victories over David Pennor of Sweden (40-25) and German Martin Horn (40-34).
In the main draw, Tran Quyet
Chien has been placed in Group C, together with Sanchez Daniel of Spain and two
players from the Republic of Korea (RoK), Heo Jung Han and Choi Sung Won. Ngo
Dinh Nai is joined by Sayginer Semih and Cenet Lutfi (Turkey), and Kim Haeng
Jik (RoK) in Group D, while Ma Minh Cam belongs to Group H, alongside Coklu
Murat Naci (Turkey), Zanetti Marco (Italy) and Philipoom Jozef (Belgium). Do
Nguyen Trung Hau has been drawn in Group G with Cho Jae Ho (RoK), Bury Jeremy
(France), and Morales Robinson (Colombia).
The 32 players will compete
in a round robin tournament, with the top two performers from each group
qualifying for the knockout round.
At the 2019 Porto World Cup,
the participants will defend their results achieved at the 2018 Blankenberge
World Cup.
The overall champion will
receive EUR16,000 in prize money and 80 UMB rating points, while a stake of
EUR10,000 and 54 rating points will be awarded to the runner-up, in addition to
EUR6,000 and 38 points for the two third-placed players, EUR3,500 and 26 points
for quarterfinalists, EUR2,500 and 16 points for the last-16 players, and
EUR1,500 and 8 rating points for the last-32 competitors.
In recent years, Lac Thuy district has paid increasing attention to investing in cultural and sports infrastructure. These grassroots facilities have attracted a large number of residents to participate in recreational and cultural activities, physical training, and community engagement, contributing to the development of cultural life and the local socio-economic growth.
In recent years, the mass physical training and sports (PTS) movement in Hoa Binh province has developed strongly and spread widely. Regardless of age, gender or occupation, people actively participate in physical training, creating a vibrant and enthusiastic sports atmosphere within the community.
Recently, Hoa Binh’s athletes have continued to show strong performances at national-level competitions. Alongside elite athletes, several standout performers have emerged from grassroots sports movements, underlining the province’s growing sports culture.
From April 26 to 27, at the Provincial Sports Arena, the Hoa Binh Provincial Karate Federation organized the 2025 Hoa Binh Open ASUDO Karate Championship.
While modern sports like volleyball and football continue to grow in popularity, traditional folk games and ethnic sports remain a vibrant and essential part of cultural life among the Muong community in Hoa Binh province.
A total of 85 young players from across Hoa Binh province recently participated in the provincial Youth Table Tennis Tournament. Organised by the provincial Centre for Youth Activities, the event was part of activities to celebrate the 94th founding anniversary of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (March 26, 1931 – 2025) and the 79th anniversary of Vietnam Sports Day (March 27, 1946 – 2025).