Nia Cooper learns life lessons and letting go of expectations while running Hong Kong 100km Grand Slam as her partner battles tumour
- The Hong Kong runner is forced to reflect on why she runs as her partner suffers from a brain tumour

Nia Cooper has just one of four 100km races left to complete the Hong Kong Grand Slam. But the journey has been filled by obstacles, far beyond the normal realm of an already challenging sport.
The Grand Slam is awarded to runners who complete the Oxfam Trailwalker (OTW), The North Face 100 (TNF), the Vibram Hong Kong 100 (HK100) and the TransLantau (TL) in four consecutive months.
For Cooper, it is about more than the physical challenge. Her partner, and father of her daughter, Nic Tinworth, was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2018 and she wanted to raise money for The Brain Tumour Charity.
“My way of showing support, aside from being there for him, is picking the races he would love to run, and has loved running,” said Cooper, 38, originally from Wales.

The first challenge was the cancellation of OTW. As Hong Kong was gripped by months of anti-government protests, the event, which was due to take place in November, was called off. But hundreds of runners turned up anyway. So Cooper set off but her family’s situation soon got the better of her and by 25km she began to cry.
