Diethelm Travel Vietnam’s running team had the opportunity to enjoy Sapa’s breathtaking views from every angle as the Vietnam Mountain Marathon 2016 (VMM 2016) took them through the beautiful mountain ranges of Hoang Lien National Park and usually closed territory during their half marathon run. Hosted on 24-25 September, the competition attracted more than 1,000 runners from over 40 countries who could choose to run 10km, 21km, 42km or 70km with more than 100 runners competing in the ultramarathon of 70km. The race covered the toughest trail in Vietnam with cumulative positive vertical metres ranging from around 1000 metres (21km) to around 3000 metres (70km).

The Vietnam Mountain Marathon 2016, is an annual charitable event organised by the Danish Embassy in Vietnam and Topas Ecolodge, and sponsored by Denmark’s NOVO Nordisk and the Vietnamese Association of Diabetes and Endocrinology (VADE).