HK100: China dominates podium as Lu Yangchun wins women’s race at her first 100km without training
- Race was Chinese runner’s first 100km run and she did not train for long distance doubting she would even finish
Lu Yangchun was the first woman over the line at the Vibram Hong Kong 100 (HK100), despite being so convinced she would not even finish, she did not bother to train for the race.
Over the last two months, the mainland Chinese athlete’s longest run was 15 kilometres.
“I had some injuries, but mainly it was because I didn’t even expect to finish. I’d done a 50km race and thought I’d reached my limit,” she said. “I thought maybe I would make it to 60km before I encountered problems.”
The HK100 is one of the premier races in Asia. It has recently been upgraded to “Series” status on the Ultra-Trail World Tour, so it drew some of the biggest names in world running. But it is traditionally a popular race for mainland runners who are unknown on the world scene despite their talent.
The race starts in Sai Kung, travels 103km across the New Territories and finishes at the base of Tai Mo Shan. It includes over 5,000 metres of climbing.
