The Course: Loops Through Sala
The 2025 race on Sunday 26 October was the fourth Gemadept Run, organised by the port and logistics company Gemadept, and offered only a 5 km and a 10 km [1][2]. It started and finished at the event site on Hoang The Thien in the Sala urban area, next to the parking area and just south of Mai Chi Tho [1].
The 10 km map shows a loop through Sala's streets (D6, N2 and Nguyen Co Thach) to the 2 km marker, then Hoang The Thien and Bui Thien Ngo to the 4 km marker, and an out-and-back up Nguyen Thien Thanh to a U-turn just north of Mai Chi Tho, passing 6 km on the way back. The route then follows Bui Thien Ngo east past 8 km and returns along Street 11 and Hoang The Thien to the finish [1]. The 5 km is a single loop over the same Sala streets and Bui Thien Ngo [1].
The season had two legs in 2025: a race at the Hai Phong Opera House square on 19 October, and this one in Ho Chi Minh City a week later [3].
The Weather: 25°C and Near Saturation
Tan Son Nhat airport, about 9 km north-west of Sala, recorded 25°C with a dew point of 24°C and 94% humidity at 5.30am and 6am, bracketing the 5.45am 10 km start, with a wind of 2 to 3 knots [4]. It stayed at 25°C through the morning, with humidity at 100% at 7.30am and 8am, and light rain was reported at 8.30am, after the course had closed [4].
A dew point of 24°C to 25°C means sweat barely evaporates, even at 25°C. Over 10 km that costs less than over a half marathon, but start slower than your usual 10 km pace and use the water stations.
Aid Stations and the Cut-off
The 10 km map shows three water stations: one on Bui Thien Ngo at the corner of Nguyen Thien Thanh, with a medical station and an ambulance; one at the junction of Hoang The Thien and Bui Thien Ngo; and one further east on Bui Thien Ngo, also with a medical station [1]. The first two sit on the out-and-back section, so you pass them in both directions [1]. The 5 km map shows two water stations, one with a medical station [1].
The race guide gave one closing time for both distances: 8.15am, two and a half hours after the 10 km start and two and a quarter after the 5 km [1]. The earlier rules document gave slightly longer limits, 2 hours 45 for the 10 km and 2 hours 30 for the 5 km, and said water and medical stations close with the course [5]. Either way the limit is generous: the slowest 10 km finisher took 2:21:25 by gun time [6]. Only finishers inside the limit get the medal, and rankings are by gun time [5].
How Fast the Field Is
Triệu Tiến Luyện won the 10 km in 33:01, from Lê Hữu Lộc in 33:24; Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Lan won the women's race in 37:39, from Lê Thị Hà in 37:54 [6]. Behind them the field thinned fast: tenth place was 38:21 for men and 52:03 for women, and only 16 runners broke 40 minutes [6]. Prizes went three deep, from 7 million VND for first to 3 million for third in the 10 km, and from 5 million to 2 million in the 5 km [1]. A woman running under 50 minutes was close to the top five; fifth place was 49:53 [6].
This is a community and corporate race more than a fast one. The median 10 km time was 1:12:16 by gun time, and the 5 km, with 1,960 finishers, drew more runners than the 10 km's 1,028, with women making up 1,122 of the 5 km finishers [6]. The organiser's partners and many entrants come from port, shipping and logistics companies, and there were separate prizes for Gemadept staff [1][2]. The press reported nearly 5,000 runners, up from nearly 4,000 in 2024 [2]; the results list 2,988 finishers across the two races [6].
Race Weekend Logistics
Race kits were handed out at the M2 lot in Sala on Saturday 25 October, from 9am to 7pm, against the QR code in the confirmation email and an ID card or passport [1]. The kit was a runner tee, a visor, UV arm sleeves, a bib belt, a tote bag and sponsor products, with the medal given at the finish [7]. There was no finisher tee in the kit list [7].
Bag drop ran from 4.30am to 9am and could close when full; electronics, cash and valuable documents were not recommended [1]. The organiser also warned that pickpocketing and bag slashing can happen in the crowded start area [1]. Parking cost 10,000 VND for a motorbike and 40,000 VND for a car, from 3am on race morning [1]. Prize winners had to show a citizen ID matching their registration at the finish [1].
Entry for the 10 km cost 480,000 VND at super early bird, limited to the first 500 entries, then 560,000, 680,000 and 850,000 VND; the 5 km cost 390,000 to 690,000 VND [7]. Entry fees were not refundable; a transfer or a change of distance cost 200,000 VND and closed on 30 September 2025 [5]. The 5 km was open from age 10 and the 10 km from age 14 [5]. Ticket revenue went to building a kindergarten school site in Nghe An province, a project costed at 820 million VND [2].
Should You Enter the 2026 Race?
Yes, if you want a relaxed 5 km or 10 km on Sala's streets, with a limit that walkers can make and the entry fee going to a school project. It suits first-timers, families and company teams.
Think twice if you want a fast, deep field to race against, or crowds along the course.
The 2026 race is on Sunday 25 October and adds a 21 km to the 5 km and 10 km [8]. The half marathon was not run in 2025, so nothing here describes its course, aid or heat later in the morning; read the 2026 race guide for those.
Nobody from this site ran the race. This review draws on the organiser's race guide, rules and registration pages, the official results, airport weather records and press reports in Vietnamese.