Extraordinary end to women’s Anta Guanjun Hong Kong 100 run as winners finish hand in hand
Veronika Leng and Hau Ha decide to cross finish line of gruelling race together while Qin Guidu leads the Chinese 1-2-3 in men’s race
There was an extraordinary end to the women’s Anta Guanjun Hong Kong 100 on Saturday, when Veronika Leng and Hau Ha crossed the line together to share first place following more than 10 hours of racing.
Slovakian Leng, who is based in Hong Kong, reeled in Ha over the second half of the 93-kilometre course after trailing her Vietnamese rival by 13 minutes and 57 seconds at the 49km checkpoint. The pair ultimately chose not to contest first position, instead finishing hand in hand in a time of 10 hours, 43 minutes and 35 seconds.
For Ha, it was a second major-race tie in 14 months, after she shared the 2024 Malaysia 100 Ultra Trail crown with Lin Chen of China.
Mainland China athlete Chi Lingjie was next home, finishing in 10:52.22 to claim third. Cheung Man-yee in ninth was the quickest Hongkonger in 12:06.05.
The runner-up last year, Leng, 35, said she had deliberately conserved energy over the initial stages, with a view to “maybe starting to chase the girls” over the closing sections.
“I felt good and kept going until we met; we were so happy to see each other and we just ran together to celebrate and finish 1-1,” Leng said.