500 athletes participate in the event 'Run for turtles'

Following the success of competitions to learn about biodiversity in marine protected areas, people’s role and responsibility for participating in marine conservation and preserving endangered and rare aquatic species in marine protected areas through painting and organizing running events in 2022 and 2023, the Department of Fisheries Surveillance (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) coordinated with the Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV) and Sporting Republic to organize the running event “Red River Half Marathon 2023” with the theme "Run4Turtles" to spread the message about conservation and protection of turtle species in general and sea turtle species in particular, and raise community awareness about threats to turtle species in Vietnam.

The running event took place on the morning of December 3 at Ciputra Urban Area (Hanoi), attracting about 500 athletes to participate in distances of 21km, 10km for the challenge, 5km for family jogging or walking, and 1km for children.

On the sidelines of the event "Run for Turtles 2023,” the Department of Fisheries Surveillance also organized activities to disseminate knowledge about sea turtles and the role and importance of protecting sea turtles in particular and aquatic resources in general to a large number of participating athletes and family members.

Through many questions and quiz games about sea turtles, participants have the opportunity to learn more specific information about sea turtles, ancient creatures that appeared on earth about 220 million years ago and still exist today, and their interesting characteristics.

The running event is not only a sports activity that encourages people to exercise their health and constitution and run with passion and energy, but it also spreads the love of sports and sea turtles to the community.

On the running track along Ciputra Urban Area, athletes, especially little athletes, both participate in jogging and immerse themselves in the festival of dressing up as extremely adorable sea turtles with the theme “Born to be Wild."

After the event, the sea turtles continued to experience and participate in a contest of beautiful photos dressed as sea turtles to spread messages about conservation and protection of sea turtles and their habitat to friends and relatives.

The sea turtle area attracts a large number of athletes to participate, with the experience of taking photos with funny sea turtle characters and posting them on social networking sites to spread the love of sea turtles.

This is a series of community activities with practical meaning jointly organized by the Department of Fisheries Surveillance and other units to raise awareness of sea turtle protection and mobilize the participation of the entire society in the conservation and protection of sea turtles and their habitat.

Vietnam is home to 26 species of tortoises, freshwater turtles, and 5 species of sea turtles, which are protected by law to varying degrees. As for sea turtle species, they are all on the list of endangered, precious, and rare species prioritized for protection and are strictly prohibited from exploitation and use for commercial purposes.

Although these indigenous turtle species are strictly protected by law, most of them are on the brink of extinction in their natural habitats due to human actions. Turtles are often illegally hunted and traded to serve the needs of raising them as pets, the custom of "releasing" or using them as food, and making other products. Therefore, protecting, preserving, regenerating, and developing turtle species is extremely necessary.

Mr. Le Tran Nguyen Hung, Head of the Department of Aquatic Resources Protection and Development, Department of Fisheries Surveillance, said: "Sea turtle species play an important role in maintaining the stability of the ecosystem, have scientific value, and bring benefits to the community from ecotourism activities. Sea turtles have immeasurable cultural and spiritual value for coastal people in many provinces and cities in Vietnam. However, the number of sea turtle species has been seriously declining worldwide, largely due to human activities."

"If we lose turtles, the ecosystem will decline, and then we will no longer have fish. Therefore, we need to join hands to protect turtles," Mr. Le Tran Nguyen Hung emphasized.