Race Media

Malaysian Simpat claims his first gold in Suunto Lantau 2 Peaks
 Oct 5 2014
The annual SUNNTO Lantau 2 Peaks trail running even organised by Action Asia Events attracted a record 1500 participants this year and lived up to the hype with a competitive field and a season opener with many runners getting an idea where they are after the hot summer.

The course alternates every year with this year’s anti- clockwise course climbing the 360 cable car route to 564m Nei Lek Shan before hiking up the 934m Lantau Peak, crossing 331m Pak Kung Au before the final climb up to 807m on Sunset Peak and a long technical stone and stair route to Wong Lung Hang before finishing back in Tung Chung for the 21km The dry and sunny weather added to more difficulties for runners pushing themselves over the peaks.
 
Champion System Adventure Daved Simpat from Malaysia overtook race leader Steve Cale near in the last 1km of the course for the overall champion in 21k category of the sixth annual Suunto Lantau 2 peaks finishing in 2 hours 34 minutes 33 seconds just one second in front of Britian Steve Cale. Simpat expressed his excitement after the race. 'I flew to Hong Kong last week to take part for the race. Since this is the first time visiting Hong Kong, I am still not used to the weather conditions here. Just like today it is boiling hot! I'd prefer the weather in Malaysia than in Hong Kong for trail running. To sum up the race in a few words, I'm so glad and surprised that I just won my first championship in Hong Kong today” said Simpat who also was crowned overall winner of the Kota Kinablu race.
 
Second place for the second year in a row in men's 21k race went to Steve Cale of the Mercia Fell Runners. 'Within 21 km, we experienced more than 3000m elevation gain/loss. This course is definitely one of the hardest running race routes in Hong Kong. It's not a great disappointment at all and I'm really pleased to place second behind a mad man like Daved,’ laughed Cale who finished in 2 hours 34 minutes 34 seconds after leading the race for 20km and Simpat getting by Cale in the last 1km.
 
Malaysian Safrey Sumping of the Champion System Adventure team grabbed the third place in men's 21k race, finishing in 3 hours 37 minutes 11 second. 'It is a tough job to finish the course within a short time especially the technical uphill section at the beginning. I have several trail running experiences in Hong Kong and the SUNNTO Lantau 2 peaks is my fifth time joining trail running race in Hong Kong with my next goal back home at another race shortly” said Sumping.
 
New Zealand runner Marie Mcnaughton grabbed the Women’s 21km title in 3 hours 9 minutes 11seconds. “I joined another trail running race organized by Action Asia Events three weeks ago, and I placed second in the Women's 18k Double Cove race which gave me certain expectations on the SUUNTO Lantau 2 peaks race today. Lantau 2peaks is a very good course. However the weather was so hot today as was just baking and became an obstacle in completing the course within a short time,” said Mcnaughton.
 
The second place of the women's 21k race went to Zein Williams (Raidlight team). 'I am a bit disappointed because I had a great chance to be on top of the race. However, I witnessed someone fell on a rock with his head and I wanted to make sure he was fine before I continued as safety comes first, said Williams. “The Suunto Lantau 2 peaks is a very nice course with beautiful scenery even the a bit polluted today. I run across the peaks quite often because I live nearby these mountains. This is definitely an advantage to me because I'm quite used to these hills.' added Williams who finished in 3 hours 12 minutes 55 seconds.
 
Australian runner Sherrin Loh finished 3rd in less than 4 minutes behind Williams in women's 21k race in 3 hours 16 minutes 50 seconds. ‘Great to see so many runners and participants from different countries who are so friendly and show great spirit in these kind of running races” said Loh.
 
In the 15km race local runner Gerald Yip grabbed the champion 1^st overall finishing in 1 hour 26 minutes 44seconds. 'I'm quite glad that I have kept the speed and rhythm along the uphill section as I expected to finish the course within 90 minutes. Apart from my physical condition, wearing my trusty old Salomon running shoes also helped me to perform better in the race” said Yip.
 
Justin Clark, the winner of Hysan Healthy Hike and Run Women's 13k race  last March continued to become the top of women's 15k race finishing the race in 1 hour 49 minutes 38 seconds. 'The course is quite tough especially at the beginning. It gets a lot easier lower down when back in Tung Chung on the flats. I enjoyed the course and the organizations by Action Asia Events. I will continue to push my limit further and sign up for the 21k race later” said Clark.
 
The overall champion of 5k race was Nick Silver finishing in 24 minutes 43 second. 'It was a great race, really enjoyable one. The course consisted of lots of flat roads so it is not as technical as I expected. Thanks a lot to everyone for making it a great day as many runners enjoyed it” said Silver.
 
Kerry-Ann Edge placed first in the Women's 5k race. Edge accomplished the task in 29 minutes 45 second. 'This is my first time joining 5k race in Hong Kong. I signed up for this introductory race as a preparation for mountain races in the future. I am really looking forward to the next race organized by Action Asia Events” said Edge

The SUUNTO Lantau 2 Peaks could not have happened without the generous support from Thong Thai, Suunto, Salomon, Amer Sports, Action X Store, Citygate Outlets, Digital Butter, Gatorade, Hong Kong Chiropractors Association, ISF, OL&N, OtterBox, Salonpas, Tibetan Safflower, Action Asia Foundation and VR2RC.
 
 
Race Information:
 
Event : SUUNTO Lantau 2 Peaks – 2014
Date : 5 October, 2014
Venue : Tung Chung, Lantau Island, Hong Kong
Time : 8am
Distance : 5km &15km & 21km
 
Route:
For 5km - Loop around Tung Chung
 
For 15km, Tung Chung Citigate → Shek Mun Kap trail through monasteries to Ngong Ping water checkpoint (458m) → Nei Lek Shan (564m) → 360 rescue cement with wooden stair trail → Tung Chung path → Citygate
 
For 21km – a tough hill climbing course that you need to train for, Tung Chung Citigate →Wong Lung Hang Road → Wong Lung Hang trail stairs → Sunset Peak → Pak Kung Au water checkpoint → Lantau Peak → Ngong Ping water checkpoint → Nei Lek Shan contour trail → 360 rescue trail → Tung Chung Citygate
 
SUUNTO
 
Suunto was founded in 1936 by Tuomas Vohlonen, a Finnish orienteer and inventor of the liquid-filled field compass. Since then Suunto has been at the forefront of design and innovation for sports watches, dive computers and instruments used by adventure seekers all over the globe. From the highest mountains to the deepest oceans, Suunto physically and mentally equips outdoor adventurers to conquer new territory.
 
Suunto's headquarters and manufacturing plant is in Vantaa, Finland. Employing more than 400 people worldwide, Suunto products are sold in over 100 countries. The company is a subsidiary of Amer Sports Corporation along with its sister brands Salomon, Arc'teryx, Atomic, Wilson, Precor, and Mavic.
Additional Information
 
 
The goals of the Action Asia Foundation include:
 
- To develop personal development opportunities for young people in Asia through organizing outdoor adventure activities
- To raise the quality of life for disadvantaged young people in Asia by funding health clinics, schools and activity centres
- To promote cultural interchange through adventure programmes and events
- To develop permanent facilities for youth adventure training
 
 
Suunto Lantau 2 Peaks - 21km
 
TOP 5 MEN OVERALL
1. Daved Simpat - Malaysia - Champion System Adventure - 2:34:33
2. Steve Cale - Great Britain - Mercia Fell Runners - 2:34:34
3. Safrey Sumping - Malaysia - Champion System Adventure - 2:37:11
4. Nicol Boyd - Great Britain - 2:40:00
5 William DAVIES - Great Britain - Salomon - 2:40:55
  
TOP 5 WOMEN OVERALL

1    Marie McNaughton - New Zealand - 3:09:51   
2    Zein Williams - Great Britain - Raidlight - 3:12:55
3    Sherrin Loh - Australia - 3:16:50    
4    Emma Bruce - Great Britain  - SportsWorld - 3:20:46
5    Isaac KIM - GBR- 3:27:17

SUUNTO LANTAU 2 PEAKS 2014 - 21 KM - TOTAL RESULTS click links or see pdf in Results on toolbar.