Vietnam’s
top track-and-field official and a consultant sent by the German Athletics
Federation are not seeing eye to eye about athletes’ training and competition
regimes ahead of next year’s London
Olympics.

Doctor Duong Duc Thuy

Dr Duong Duc Thuy, head of the track and field unit of the
General Department of Sports and Physical Training, and Dr Uwe Freimuth are
agreed on sending woman sprinter Vu Thi Huong and 800m runner Truong Thanh Hang
for long-term training abroad.

However, Freimuth wants to send Hang to train in the
Himalayan nation of Bhutan
at an altitude of 2,300 – 3,200m above sea level, while Thuy is not keen on it.

“In my book, the most suitable training place for such a
runner is at a height of 1,800m to 2,500m,” Thuy said.

It is widely accepted that high-altitude training is good
for most athletes because of the thinner air.

Doctor Uwe Freimuth

Freimuth is adamant: “A place lower than 2,300m will not
suit her.”

Participation in events during the training session is also
a divisive issue.

Thuy wants Hang and Huong to take part in the Asian
Athletics Grand Prix in May in China
while Freimuth prefers European events in which many top-class athletes
compete.

“They [the athletes] should compete at the Asian
championships to earn prize money and accumulate points granted by the
International Association of Athletics Federation,” Thuy said.

Freimuth came to Vietnam in 2009 under an agreement
between the German Olympic Association and Vietnamese sports authorities to
prepare athletes for the 2012 Olympics and also for long-term development.

He reports to the German Athletics Federation every four
months about his work and the status of Vietnam’s track-and-field athletes.

Source: Tuoi Tre