Nepalese Manikala Rai aims for Vibram 100

Five years ago, Manikala Rai was inspired to take up running after watching a group of women descend Everest in the high-altitude Tenzing Hillary Marathon. Tomorrow, she will be the one to inspire, as she becomes the first woman to represent Nepal in the Vibram Hong Kong 100.

She will join 1,200 runners from around the globe as they tackle 100km of the hilliest terrain across the New Territories on parts of the MacLehose Trail.

It will be Rai's first race over the gruelling distance - her longest previous run being 80km - but that will not stop her from being a top contender, her manager and coach, Ramesh Bhattachan, says.

In a 50km mountain marathon in the Annapurna region of Nepal last March, she was the first woman over the line in six hours and 15 minutes, almost 45 minutes ahead of Hong Kong runner and last year's Vibram second-place female finisher Claire Price.

But the triple-digit distance on foreign soil will be a challenge, says the 24-year-old, though one she is well prepared for, having spent the past two months in rigorous training and running 120km or more a week. Rai also believes her experience as a trekking guide and porter in the Everest region will give her an edge.

"She has very good endurance and mentally is very strong," Bhattachan says.