Organizers: ‘The most attended TrailHiker ever’

Grant Bowie (left) hands a cheque to Sister Juliana Devoy; TrailHiker directors Kowie Geldenhuys (second from right) and Robert Kirby present a cheque to Rotary Club president Fátima Ferreira

The eighth MGM Macau Eco TrailHiker took place on Saturday at The Venetian Macao’s Il Prato and ran along different natural trails in Coloane, exploring the green side of Macau. 

Held in a relaxed and family friendly atmosphere, the event attracted 2,200 participants in 550 teams, racing for top honors in two categories: 10km family fun and 30km corporate challenge. Organizers claim the event was “the most attended TrailHiker ever.”

Like in past editions, entry fees were donated to charity. This year, a total of MOP400,000 went to the Macau Rotary Club and Sisters of the Good Shepherd. 

According to a press release issued by title sponsor MGM, the Sisters of the Good Shepherd will use their portion of the proceeds for daily operations, while the Rotary Club will focus on service projects for local children and adults with special needs.

The event attracted not only local enthusiasts but also teams from mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Portugal, Australia, Nepal and the United States.

On the competitive side, the winners of the 10km family race, 愛華跑步, finished the course in 44 minutes and 16 seconds, followed by 珠海K神軍團 and 勵駿 Landmark Tiger.

The 30km winners cross the finishing line

For the 30km course, the champion was Team Uglow Asia, finishing in two hours, 37 minutes and 29 seconds. The first and second runners-up were Run Plus 泰北男街坊隊 and Wynn Macau Trail, respectively.

To encourage more women to participate, the organizer added two new prizes this year: the First All-Female Team 10km Award and the First All-Female Team 30km Award. The winners were Girls on Heels and Run Plus 4 虎聯盟, respectively.

TrailHiker director Robert Kirby told the Times that the event was particularly challenging to organize, due to the damage caused by Typhoon Hato.

“If we go back to August 23, when the super-typhoon Hato hit, we lost 10,000 trees in Coloane. All the trails were destroyed. That is not an overstatement: I went out there and I saw the devastation. So immediately, my concern was: ‘Will we get the trails back in time for November 4?’”

Kirby added that there was also a change of venue, as they had originally planned for the event to take place at the MGM Cotai.

“Even though the lovely integrated resort was not going to be open, we were still going to start and finish there. That was the plan. But of course, the typhoon damaged some of their high-level structure, which meant that they couldn’t go forward with their licensing process. That meant there wasn’t going to be a license, so no license [means that] we can’t use any of their facilities.”

“Then we had to start searching for alternative venues and we ended up reaching [out] to our past sponsor [the] Venetian, and they were so gracious that they allowed MGM to use their facilities and welcomed the event back,” he continued.

“That’s a good example of two competitors creating a win-win [situation] for the two integrated resorts and also for the community at large. Since August, most community events have been canceled and we had extra motivation to make this happen, even though at one point it was looking like we might have to postpone.”

MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren (right) took part in the event

Overall, Kirby was enthusiastic about the 2017 TrailHiker, claiming that it is among the “most popular annual sports events in the region,” with registration for this year’s event filling up in only 90 minutes.

“My gut feeling: It’s been probably the best [TrailHiker] yet,” he said.

Grant Bowie, CEO and executive director of MGM China, said the gaming operator was “honored to be the title sponsor” of the event and looks forward to supporting its future growth. The company had a total of 240 team members join the 10km and 30km courses, with over 100 volunteers supporting the event.

“I am glad that even though it looked like it would be raining, the event was successfully held in good weather.  I can see both our MGM team members, as well as other participants from Macau or abroad, enjoying the event while demonstrating a good team spirit, running through the finishing line as a team.  I would like to thank all those who have helped to make this event a wonderful one, and I am looking forward to this great community event being held in MGM Cotai next year,” Bowie told the Times.

A team walking the trails

Climbing the steps

Anticipating the next edition, Robert Kirby said the 2018 TrailHiker will improve upon previous years, with plans to introduce a 20km course. “Some of the 10km teams are asking for a greater distance, but not going to 30km,” he said.

The organizers plan to introduce “a whole weekend of wellness, running and hiking” to future editions, which they expect to attract more international teams. PB

Macau Daily Times is Macau Eco TrailHiker’s
official media partner

Reduction of paper and plastic use

Measures such as the reduction of paper and plastic use were introduced to make the event more environmentally friendly. Certificates of participation will be issued electronically instead of on paper, and participants were encouraged to bring their own water bottles.

Lunch buffet