(REUTERS) — Tower runners took the challenge to conquer the 2,046 stairs of Taipei 101 on Sunday (May 1), ascending 390 metres in the fifth tallest building on earth.
The event was part of this year’s Towerrunning Tour, a series of races that travels to international metropolises including London, New York, Paris and Frankfurt. The sport allows participants to climb the stairs of the world’s tallest man-made structures, competing for the best times.
Athletes in Taipei competed in of relays and single races, starting on the ground level of Taiwan’s iconic landmark Taipei 101 tower, in intervals of only several seconds.
Although Alice McNamara, a doctor from Melbourne who won first place in the women’s division, was not able to beat the all-time women’s record of 12’38″85 for Taipei stop, she succeeded in beating her own personal best at this year’s race.
“It’s my second time in Taipei. I came second two years ago and I’ve broken my own record by, my own personal time by 16 seconds to win this time, so I’m very excited. I love Taipei, I love that fact that the building is so tall and it’s a long race. For me 14 minutes, it’s a long time and you need to be in a rhythm and do a lot of training beforehand, that allows you to do a long race, and it’s very satisfying,” she said.
Frank Carreno, who travelled to Taipei for the first time from his home town of Bogota, Colombia, was very satisfied with the result that earned him overall first place in the race. He achieved a time of 11’47″24, putting him more than one minute behind the current record of 10’29″32.
“It’s a very difficult run, the steps are very high and it’s twice as long as the distance that I’ve been training,” he said.
The race saw more than 4,000 participants from all walks of life, with contestants still waiting to challenge the stairs after the winners had already left the scene.
