Many local engineers and businessmen have had the chance to fire real military guns made in Vietnam by participating in a friendly shooting competition in Hanoi.

Fifty amateur shooters partook in the tournament organized by the Vietnam Shooting Federation (VSF) at the Mieu Mon shooting range in My Duc District on Saturday.

Each participant was required to pay VND3 million (US$131) to be able to fire a total of 15 shots with real K14-VN pistols produced by Vietnam.

They were all willing to pay a higher amount just to have the chance to practice with the firearm more often.

Tran Dinh Tru, an engineer from Sudico Hanoi Company, and his two colleagues appeared to be more than ready for the competition as they put on the exact same outfit as famous shooter Hoang Xuan Vinh when he received the gold medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Vinh made history for Vietnam after winning the country’s first-ever Olympic gold medal during the Games in August last year.

Tru stated that he had spent one day practicing with professional coaches from the national shooting team at the Hanoi sports center prior to the tournament.

During the individual round, Tru managed to hit two out of three targets after 10 shots, a rather impressive result for his first time shooting with real guns.

“Shooting helps me relieve stress. I have played golf before, but shooting is even more interesting,” the engineer said, hoping that he would have more opportunities to play the sport more regularly.

Nguyen Manh Cuong, who is running a beverage business in Angola, came to the competition as a more experienced shooter.

“I have lived in Africa for a long time and have been able to practice shooting with real bullets quite often as the activity is legal in Angola,” Cuong said.

Handling a Vietnamese pistol in the contest was not such a challenge for the entrepreneur.

Cuong joined the tourney with his 12-year-old son. The father and son duo managed to snatch a gold medal after hitting all targets in the team challenge.

More playgrounds for shooting enthusiasts

Tran Dinh Vong, chairman of the management board at the Hanoi-based Kien Hung Urban development JSC, who was one of the competitors, expressed his strong passion for the type of sport.

However, there are not many places in Vietnam for him to pursue his hobby.

Vong said he had even joined an amateur tournament in Thailand to feed his zeal.

“Shooting helps me sharpen my patience and develop a quick reaction. I have asked authorities in Hanoi to open more playgrounds for amateurs to practice and enjoy the sport,” he elaborated.

Another participant stated that he owns a sports pistol himself but has never had any chance to use it due to the lack of shooting ranges, though Vietnam bans the ownership of lethal firearms.

“If a shooting field is opened, I believe thousands of amateur shooters will be willing to pay a high fee to practice at the venue,” he stated.

According to Nguyen Thi Nhung, general secretary of the VSF, the organization is expected to open a field for skeet shooting.

The construction of a shooting range will then be considered for shooting enthusiasts to practice, Nhung said, adding that it could also be where Vietnam’s next shooting talent is found.