Road running is a challenge of its own but trail running is a different ball game entirely in the cardio game. To be able to smash a 16km course record on trail is an incredible feat and something that Min Xiang Lee achieved at the second Trail Titans Kiara Hill recently.
Xiang Lee finished in 2:07:20, shaving an incredible 10 minutes off the record once held by Ben Hails whose time was 2:17:58 at the inaugural Trail Titans Kiara Hill last year. 32-year-old Xiang Lee, while being an experienced road racer, is relatively new to trail running and made his competitive debut in this event.
“I usually train here at Kiara Hill which is what made me decide to take part in this Trail Titans,” said Xiang Lee. “It was a pretty challenging and technical course but I had targeted to break the course record and I’m delighted that I managed to achieve my objectives,” he continued.
Trail Titans Kiara Hill is the first of a series of trail running events organised by Dirigo Events, the owner and organiser of the award-winning Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon. Over 200 participants took to the trails at Kiara Hill competing across three categories - the challenging 16km, the baseline 10km and a newly introduced 5km category. The 5km was introduced to encourage participants who are new to trail running and to get families to participate together.
Gloria Ng, Director of Dirigo Events, was happy with the turnout and is already looking forward to the next two Trail Titans events this year. “It’s fantastic to see all these runners come out early on a Sunday morning and enjoy the day out in nature in this beautiful location so close to the city. It’s even nicer to see that some of them are out as families and this encourages and motivates us to continue with our objective of making Trail Titans a viable alternative to road running for those who are looking for something different to keep themselves fit and healthy,” said Gloria.
Most participants felt that the course this time around was more challenging than the last but that did not stop them from enjoying themselves out on the trail. Mohd. Zamri, aged 45, and his daughter Qalesya Zandra, aged 12, were all smiles as they crossed the finish line in the 5km category. “I wanted to introduce my daughter to the joys of trail running and I’m happy that she managed to complete the course without much difficulty. In fact, instead of pacing her, I ended up having to follow her for the latter part of the route,” said Zamri, who plans to introduce his younger daughter when she is age-eligible and make running a whole family affair.
16km Results
16km Men's Open
1. Min Xiang Lee (2:07:20)
2. Mior Rashidi (2:18:12)
3. Muhamad Syami Mohd Noh (3:09:03).
16km Women’s Open
1. Hanna Rashid (3:04:29)
2. Jacqueline Koh (3:08:29)
3. Chai Yee Ling (3:18:22)
16km Men’s Veteran
1. Yakov Kozlov (2:13:47)
2. Muhamad Noor Mohd Pilus (2:30:52)
3. Johari Mohd Ali (2:36:44).
16km Women’s Veteran
1. Syarifah Balqis Syed Hamzah (2:46:51)
2. Sook Khim Lim (2:58:48)
3. Francis Lyn Evasco (3:00:11)
40-year-old Kozlov, who is a Russian engineer residing in Mont Kiara, took part to support a race in his community. “It was a tough and technical course, but even for someone who regularly runs here, the really cool thing was discovering new sections that I have not explored before,” said Kozlov.
10km Results
1. Shamirul Taufiq (1:17:46)
2. Lim Wei Seng (1:17:50)
3. Jia Qing Lim(1:26:45).
1. Vithya Vijayakumare (1:45:41)
3. Joeann Too (1:50:38)
The top three finishers in all categories received winners’ medals and cash prizes while the top five finishers in all categories were rewarded with free entry into the next Trail Titans event. Xiang Lee received an additional cash prize of RM500 for his record-breaking achievement.
Dirigo Events are expected to announce the next edition in their Trail Titans series very soon so stay tuned to their Facebook to be the first to sign up for what is expected to be a sought-after series of events.
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