Wai Ching, Malaysia’s top tower runner, establishes a new record and defends the MBPJ title

PETALING JAYA: The men’s Open champion, Soh Wai Ching, who is currently ranked first in the world, set a new record in this year’s 2024 Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) Tower Run.

From the beginning, Wai Ching was clearly in a class of his own. He ascended the 25-story building’s 552 flights of stairs in the fastest time of one minute and 49 seconds (s), shattering his previous record of 1:57s.

The 30-year-old’s triumph was made even more special by the fact that Ching Chun Lo of Taiwan finished third in 2:16 seconds, while his protégé Muhammad Hazim Zuhairi Azahari came in second with a time of 2:05s.

“We had my protege, who is ranked 12th in the world, and the world’s number 10 player from Taiwan, so the competition today was pretty tough.” They fought me hard, and with the tower’s low elevation of just 25 stories, anything could happen.

I am happy with my overall time because I hit my best mark. Wai Ching told Bernama, “But I feel like I can go faster because I started to slow down in the last five floors.”

When asked about Muhammad Hazim’s performance, Wai Ching expressed his pride in the 22-year-old’s accomplishment, particularly in defeating the Taiwanese ace with a higher ranking.

“This is encouraging for him, and I hope he keeps doing well in this sport. When the time comes for me to retire, I hope he can place among the top five in the world by the end of this year,” he remarked.

In the women’s Open category, Malaysia secured a 1-2-3 result, led by national star Nurul Juliana Shakira Abdul Hallim, who defeated fellow countryman Tan Bee Kiang in three minutes and sixteen seconds. Valerie Sarah Ong finished third in three minutes and sixteen seconds. – Bernama