HCMC to host 1st vertical race up 49 floors
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Ho Chi Minh City will host a vertical race up the city’s tallest building Bitexco Financial Tower this October.
The Bitexco Vertical Run, the first of its kind in Vietnam, is scheduled on October 30 and will require participants to run up a total 1,002 steps through 178 meters to reach the 49th floor that houses the Saigon Skydeck.
The Skydeck promises a panoramic view of Ho Chi Minh City and the Saigon River.
Vertical running, a new sport starting in the 1970s, has drawn many runners and sports enthusiasts to races held globally in some of the world’s tallest buildings.
The Bitexco Vertical Run has been selected as a trial race for the 2011 Vertical World Circuit, the world’s first and only skyscraper racing circuit which includes the Empire State Building Run-up and the Taipei 101 Run-up in Taiwan.
Professionals and runners of all fitness levels and children above 12 are all welcomed at the race, an organizer said.
“Vertical running is a bit like the challenge of Mount Everest; why do people climb it? Because it’s there. Because it’s a challenge.” David Shin of Sporting Republic who organizes the event said.
Inaugurated last October, the 262m high Bitexco Tower, owned by Vietnamese corporation Bitexco Group, is the 124th tallest skyscraper in the world.
Online registration started on July 1 at http://www.vietnamrun.com/ and closes on August 31, with a US$12 registration fee.
