Tourism minister wants it to be held yearly
Sabah’s inaugural tropical rainforest run got off to a promising start four years ago in the eastcoast timber town of Tawau. It attracted 230 runners. Six came from Kenya and nine from Indonesia. But three months later the Covid-19 outbreak scuttled all its future plans. The pandemic is over. And the run is returning to the Tawau Hills Park on November 26 with a field of 250 runners who include participants from Kenya, Australia, Canada, Japan, Indonesia, and Singapore.
Christina Liew, Sabah’s minister of tourism, culture and environment, told a press conference today that she wants the run to be an annual event. The reason is obvious. It’s sports tourism. Runners are not interested in the prize money which is a pittance. RM3,000 for the champion can’t pay for travelling expenses. The run through the rainforest teeming with wildlife is part of their holiday and an exercise in nature appreciation, officials say.
Runners are however warned to keep their distance and think of their safety when encountering wild animals. But this adds to their excitement.
The 280 square km Tawau Hills Park, three times the size of Labuan island, is home to exotic plants, some of the world’s tallest trees that are almost 100 metres tall and animals such as the Borneon gibbons, grey-leaf monkeys, red leaf monkeys, hornbills, rare pheasants and civet cats.
The more challenging 21-km half marathon race takes runners up to a height of 800 metres through the trails of Mount Lucia, an extinct volcano. There are two other extinct volcanoes in the park: Mount Magdalena and Mount Maria. Along the way are stunning waterfalls.
The gentler and shorter 6km race take runners past a turquoise hot spring.
Sabah Insights 