Runner in Hong Kong's Lantau 2 Peaks race escapes with broken arm after tree stops him plunging down slope

A runner in this year's “Lantau 2 Peaks – A Skyrunner World Series Event” was saved by a tree, escaping with a broken arm, when he slipped off the trail and plunged down a slope near Ngong Ping in the stormy weather on Sunday morning.

The 45-year-old Belgian, identified only as Michel by police, was running on Tei Tong Tsai Country Trail when he slipped at about 11.30am, with the wind reaching gale force at times. He is said to have fallen about four metres down the slope before the tree halted his fall.

Rescuers took about two hours to reach the runner and a similar time to free him. He was first taken to Ngong Ping cable car station on a stretcher before being taken by ambulance to Princess Margaret Hospital.

Another runner who had joined in the rescue effort said the morning had been “bad” for the competitors, referring to the heavy downpours brought by Typhoon Mujigae, which made the tough 23km race even more challenging for the 1,000 runners.

The weather dampened the spirits of some other runners, who decided to quit. One of them said on a Facebook page: “To quit require more guts [than to run], before such kind of weather conditions, I really have to quit.”

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 Another runner said a stream on Sunset Peak had turned into rapids, while another said it hurt when the driving rain hit his body and he had to grab onto grass to balance himself in the wind.