Cheung Man-yee
26th April 2025 – (Tokyo) Hong Kong trail runner Cheung Man-yee made history on Saturday, 26th April, by becoming the first runner from Hong Kong to win the women’s championship at the Mt. FUJI 100, a 100-mile ultramarathon in Japan. The race spans 168 kilometers with an elevation gain of 6,254 meters, taking runners through the breathtaking trails, forests, and foothills of Mt. Fuji. Cheung crossed the finish line at Fuji Hokuroku Park with a time of 23 hours and 42 minutes, finishing 54 minutes ahead of the second-place runner, Zhang Huiping.
The race began on Friday afternoon at the Fuji Children’s Kingdom. Cheung started in fourth place after the first checkpoint at Fujinomiya, a relatively flat 25-kilometer stretch. However, she took the lead at the second checkpoint after climbing Mount Kumamori, where the early leader, Claudia Tremps from Spain, withdrew due to an ankle injury. From that point onward, Cheung steadily widened her lead.
Cheung reached the third checkpoint at Lake Shoji after covering 70 kilometres in less than nine hours, holding a lead of over 20 minutes. By the fifth checkpoint at Oshino, she had completed 113 kilometres and extended her lead to over an hour ahead of her closest competitor, Japan’s Edamo Kana. Her commanding performance continued through the final stretch, earning her a decisive victory.
Cheung is an accomplished trail runner who has represented Hong Kong in international competitions, including the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships. She also placed seventh in the long-distance race at last year’s Asia-Pacific Championships. Earlier this year, she was the top-performing local runner at the Hong Kong 100, finishing ninth in the women’s category.
The Mt. FUJI 100, part of the Gran Canaria World Trail Majors series, is renowned for its scenic yet gruelling course. Originally launched in 2012, the race has faced challenges such as severe weather and the COVID-19 pandemic but remains a bucket-list event for elite runners worldwide. Cheung’s victory highlights her exceptional endurance and cements her status as one of Hong Kong’s top trail athletes.
The 2025 edition of Mt. FUJI 100 also featured intense competition among women runners, with no clear favourite at the start. However, Cheung’s steady pace and strong strategy helped her dominate a field that included top athletes from Japan, China, and Europe.
AloJapan.com