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TAIPEI--Over 4,000 people yesterday joined a marathon race to runup Taiwan's tallest building to challenge themselves and raisemoney for a charitable cause. The annual event, now in its eighth year, kicked off at 8 a.m. atthe Taipei 101 lobby and saw runners from Taiwan and 19 othercountries climb 2,046 stairs, or 390 meters, up to the 91st floorof the building. I hope my participation can encourage more people to face theshortcomings in their lives, said Zhai Xiaowei, a Chinese dancerwho lost one leg in an accident when he was four. Zhai, 27, said he decided to come to Taiwan to join the event afterhearing about it from his friend. I enjoy challenges, especially when I am able to reach beyond mylimits when my body feels tired and wants to give up, said Zhai. It's an exiting feeling, a feeling of victory. Zhai finished 85th among 88 runners with a time of 49 minutes 35seconds. Norbert Lechner from Austria, who joined the race for the firsttime, said it was the most difficult marathon of its kind he hasparticipated in, comparing it to races in Chicago's Willis Towerand New York's Empire State Building. The steps are very high and steep, said 27-year-old Lechner,who added that it was already difficult for him when he reached thestairs in the 30th story and from the 60th story stairs and up hewas just running on will power. Germany's Thomas Dold, a three time winner of the event, called therace an unbelievable challenge and the building so incrediblyhigh. Several runners laid flat on their backs after reaching thefinishing line. Dold finished second in the elite runners' men's division, fourseconds behind Mark Bourne from Australia, who clocked 11 minutes26 seconds. Despite the difficulty, Lechner said he joined the race becauseit's one of the most famous races and it's a charity and a goodreason to run. Organizers said they raised over NT$2 million (US$66,822) from themarathon and the series of pre-races for ORBIS International anon-profit organization working to prevent blindness and offertreatments in developing countries. A total of NT$4 million will be donated to ORBIS after the StandardChartered Bank's Taiwan branch, which sponsored the event, matchesthe contributions, said organizers. Held under the banner Run for a Reason, organizers said theevent encourages runners to challenge themselves and to participatein charity at the same time. The event, jointly organized by the Taipei Financial Center Corp.and the Taipei City Government, divides contestants into eliterunners, charity relay groups, corporate groups and individualrunners. Meanwhile, in the women's division Valentina Belotti from Italy wonfor the second year in a row, in a time of 13 minutes 21 seconds.The total cash prize for the race was NT$1,010,000. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Hot Valentine Gifts Manufacturer , Promotional Silicone Bracelet, and more. For more , please visit Led Crystal Keychain today!
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