Race Media

2018/19 HK50 Series

Oct 20, 2018 - Hong Kong 50

Dec 2, 2018 - Lantau 50 - Asian Skyrunning Championship

Feb 23, 2019 - Sai Kung 50

Mar 23, 2019 - HK50 WEST

Ixel and Ho leading series into final new HK50 West

HONG KONG, Thursday, March 21, 2019 – The inaugural HK50 West will be held on Saturday, 23^rd March as the final leg of the 2018-19 HK50 Series. HK50 West offers two distances - 22km and 50km covering the most scenic western part of Hong Kong trails. Team of 2 option is also provided by the organizer Action Asia Events. The goal of the team event is to encourage runners to push the physical limit together while enjoying the early spring scenery of Shing Mun Reservoir.

Both 22km and 50km will be flagged off from Shing Mun Reservoir Catchwater, the total elevation gain of 50km race is 2,474 metres and the total elevation gain of 25km is 1,290 metres. All runners will run through the highest point (917 metres) of the course at Tai Mo Shan to enjoy the spectacular view.  

HK50 West, the final leg of the 18-19 HK50 Series, will also be the tiebreaker of the overall series winners.  Currently, the top-ranked male and female runners are Vlad Ixel from Australia and the local Hong Kong female runner Jcy Ho. Ixel shared: ‘‘Over the past 6 years I have run over 30 Action Asia events and every single race has been put to the highest standards in teams of course marking, quality of courses and overall experience so I wasn’t going to miss the new HK50 West event. I can’t wait to get out there and experience another great event.’’

The leading female runner, Jcy Ho is looking forward to the Saturday race: ‘‘I like new course every now and then but at the same time, I prefer if the course will stay the same at least for a few years so that I can break my own record.’’ 

Coming all the way from the Philippines for HK50 West, ‘Stingray’ John Ray Galutera Onifa aims for a good performance in the race: ‘‘Of course, I always give my best for each race and try to win. But I am recovering from a knee injury. Although I’m not 100%, the HK50 West will be a good test for me,’’ he will have his hands full as Vlad Ixel will also be on the start line.

Local trail elite Law Chor Kin will team up with Cheung Man Yee for the first time at the race. They said: ‘‘The HK50 West race course revolves around the Shing Mun Reservoir which is my regular training route and it’s beautiful along the way. To get familiar with the race course and physical condition of each other, we will mainly train on the race course together before the race. For the race goal, we didn’t set any for the race but just want to have fun and finish the race safely.’’    

Another local trail runner Ng Wai Hei is aiming to be in the top three. “I am keen on trail running races because I like exploring new things and I hope to try different challenges. The HK50 West race course is new to me so it is a good challenge and I hope to finish the race within 5 hours and 30 minutes. I just started to get back in shape as the foot injury in last November affected my training. I plan to train on the race course and get to know the environment and the terrain. Having a strong performance and try to be the among top three is my goal for this race,” Ng said.   

The event is present due to all of the generous sponsors and supporting partners: Action X Store, Skyrunner National Series, Hoka One One, Royale International, Camelbak, Lion Rock Brewery, Instinct Trial Inspired, 2Trooms, Squeeze Sports Nutrition, Nectar Hydro, Lorence & Company, Outdoor Channel, Salonsip, Herbalgy, UTMB Qualifier 2019, ITRA and Alka12.

Race information

Event Name	HK50 Series - HK50 west
Date	March 23, 2019(Saturday)
Start Time	8:30 am - 50km 9:00 am - 25km
Start/Finish:	Shing Mun Reservoir Catchwater, Tsuen Wan (2 minutes walk from Shing Mun Pineapple Dam minibus stop)
Distance	25km, 50km

 

For more race details, please check out the links below:

www.actionasiaevents.com

www.facebook.com/ActionAsiaEvent/

www.instagram.com/actionasiaevents/

www.twitter.com/ActionAsiaEvent

www.youtube.com/user/ActionAsiaEvents

 

About Skyrunning

Since the first extreme races in 1992, the first World Championship in 1998 and the introduction of the Skyrunner World Series in 2003, Skyrunning has grown to become a globally renowned sport governed by the International Skyrunning Federation. In 2015, the Continental Championships were introduced and includes Asia, Europe, North America, Africa and Oceania. The sport is practiced in more than 40 nations and counts followers from 126 countries.