4 Trail Ultra Loop: ultra-marathon’s belated full-scale debut after Covid-19 sends runners on ferry and MTR trains
- 271 trail runners from the UK, Japan, Nepal, Taiwan and mainland China start 146km route from Tai Mo Shan early on Friday
- They will tackle all four of Hong Kong’s major trails, plus legs by ferry and train, before the fastest reach the finish on Saturday morning
The 4 Trail Ultra Loop (4TUL) got under way at Tai Mo Shan early on Friday morning, with elite runners from the UK, Japan, Taiwan and mainland China running the 146km ultra-marathon that graces all of Hong Kong’s four major trails.
This year marked the first time that runners were able to start a timed race together. Previous editions were either an individual challenge or virtual races because of Covid-19 restrictions.
The route, which spans 189km including a distance spent on public transport, was created by Kenneth Seto in November 2020, when 25 runners managed to finish within the 36-hour time frame.
“I previously did all of the Hong Kong Four Trails over four weekends,” Seto said.
“For most of us, it is not possible to complete them in a short time. So I designed a route for people to experience a part of all four of the Hong Kong trails.”
