a day ago
Mei Yan outruns the men at Langkawi Ultra Run
KUALA LUMPUR: It was meant to be her husband's big day but instead, it was Wong Mei Yan who stole the show in spectacular fashion at the Langkawi International Ultra Run, becoming the fastest overall finisher in the prestigious 100km round island ultra-road event on Sunday.
The 32-year-old from Hong Kong, better known for her marathon and trail-running exploits, clocked a blistering 10 hours, 29 minutes and 38 seconds, not only topping the women's field but also outrunning all male contenders, including Malaysia's Sazuiam Zakaria (10:52:42) and Steven Ong (10:54:00).
What made her triumph all the more remarkable?
It was her first-ever road ultra, and she was only in Langkawi because her husband wanted to attempt the 100km distance.
"He was the one who found this race online and said we should try it together," laughed Mei Yan.
"But guess what — he gave up at 35km! He DNF-ed! I finished — he quit!"
Despite her endurance background, Mei Yan had zero expectations of winning.
"I usually run marathons or trail ultras, which are slower because of the elevation. I just told myself to keep moving, except for some of the slopes, and I'm really surprised I finished first overall."
Running through the night posed its own challenge. Mei Yan ditched her headlamp due to discomfort and instead carried it by hand for the entire run.
"It gives me headaches if I wear it, so I held it the whole way. Now my legs and arms are sore."
Exhausted but elated, Mei Yan called Langkawi "beautiful" and said she and her husband would return, but next time, just for vacation.
"The views are amazing. The ocean, the mountains — so peaceful. I didn't expect it to be this beautiful," said Mei Yan.
"We love joining races overseas, especially half marathons, because we still have energy afterwards to go sightseeing and explore," she added with a laugh.
Another standout performance came from local ultra specialist Ku Seng Lip, who emerged as the fastest finisher in the newly introduced 100km dual-format ultra — a punishing combination of 50km trail followed immediately by 50km road.
Seng Lip completed the course in 14:53:59, ahead of compatriots Wong Wai Seng (17:22:56) and Lee Yi Siang (17:33:15), in what was described as Malaysia's first-ever hybrid trail-road ultra.
While Seng Lip is no stranger to trail ultras, the road segment pushed him out of his comfort zone.
"My strength is in trails, not tarmac. Even after 11km, I was already tired and had to pace myself to recover," he said.
"I actually don't like road ultras, but this one looked interesting, so I signed up anyway."
Though he fell short of his target on the trail section, Seng Lip was satisfied with his overall result.
"I was aiming for seven hours but finished in eight and a half. Still, it's a great challenge and I think this is one format that should continue. As an ultra-runner, the tougher it is, the more we want to test ourselves."
Organised by Lumen Sports and supported by the Langkawi Development Authority (LADA),
the Langkawi International Ultra Run drew over 1,000 participants from 26 countries,
making it the largest edition to date.
RESULTS
*Malaysia unless stated
100km
Male: 1. Sazuiam Zakaria 10:52:42, 2. Steven Ong 10:54:00, 3. Law Chor Kin (Hkg) 10:54:21.
Female: 1. Wong Mei Yan (Hkg) 10:29:38, 2. Lim Siok Har 11:24:06, 3. Tracy Ice 12:53:35.
100km (50km trail/50km road)
Male: 1. Ku Seng Lip 14:53:59, 2. Wong Wai Seng 17:22:56, 3. Lee Yi Siang 17:33:15.
Female: 1. Vivian Tong 16:52:55, 2. Lim Chee Lai 19:10:33, 3. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong (Vie)
20:33:54.
50km (Trail)
Male: 1. Michael Costevec (Hkg) 7:30:23, 2. Adam Mrad (Swe) 7:30:23, 3. Tan Beh Loh 8:14:09.
Female: 1. Ang Yee Mei 8:23:14, 2. Jamie Leong 9:45:48, 3. Chai Yee Ling 9:45:55.
50km (Road)
Male: 1. D' Arcy Lunn (Aus) 3:49:44, 2. Yong Ken Jia 4:13:01, 3. Asyraf Farhan 4:32:49.
Female: 1. Enda Tan 5:09:03, 2. Chee Lih Peng 5:33:46, 3. Phyllis Law 5:43:23.
21km
Male: 1. Zulu Irminger (Swi) 1:29:57, 2. Hafiz Azmi 1:35:51, 3. Adi Azri Yusof 1:36:07.
Female: 1. Tessa Mulder (Ned) 1:44:29, 2. Lim Wei Tien 1:57:46, 3. Kuah Kim Hiong 1:58:08.
10km
Male: 1. Nazry Khir 47:19, 2. Jacques Matthieu Loic Morin (Fra) 49:52, 3. Goh Chee Tiong 50:09.
Female: 1. Mazlina Shafura Abdul Manap 58:38, 2. Rusvaneeda Zainol 58:55, 3. Siti Nur Hidayah Md Aziz 1:04:33.
