Vietnam ranked 12th after winning eight gold, eight silver and 24 bronze medals at the event, which is held once every four years.
The Asian Para Games, the continent’s largest event for disabled athletes, took place in Jakarta from October 6 to 13. This year, 3,000 athletes from a total of 43 Asian countries took part, Vietnam Plus reports.
Fifty-two Vietnamese athletes took part in the competition and were supported by 11 coaches and caretakers. They competed in seven of the event’s 18 total sports – judo, weightlifting, chess, badminton, table tennis, swimming and track and field.
They won medals in every sport they competed in, apart from judo, and each of the four weightlifters won medals, including two golds. Most impressively, the Vietnamese swimming team brought home four gold, four silver and thirteen bronze medals.
China gained the top spot at this year’s event after taking home 172 gold medals, while Korea and Iran took second and third place with 53 and 51 golds, respectively.
Also of note was that during the opening ceremony, North and South Korean delegates marched together under one unified flag of Korea for the first time since the event’s inception.
At the previous event, in 2014, Vietnam won nine gold, eight silver and thirteen bronze medals, and finished in 10th place.
[Photo via Vietnam Airlines]
