Asian Games steeplechase athlete Wu Wen-chien (
Wu was among the leading pack from the start of the race at 7am, which was run in humid but clear conditions after smatterings of rain the previous night.
PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES
Veteran marathon and ultra-marathon runner Uladimir Kotau of Belarus teamed up with training partner Marek Dryja of Poland to force the pace in the early stages and were rewarded at the finish with second and third places, respectively.
They managed to pull away from the 2,000-strong mass of runners that started the race after just 5km, but were unable to shake off Wu and a chasing posse of Taiwan runners.
This pattern held until the 26-year-old high-school teacher from Taipei decided to make his move at the 18km mark.
The first half of the 42.195km race was all the way up a spindly portion of the Central Cross-Island Highway through the gorge -- to the turn-point on Wensan Mountain -- and it took its toll on the leading international athletes.
First Kotau and then Dryja fell off the pace and Wu said afterwards he had noticed the pair were tiring and decided to move up a gear.
"When I overtook them I was full of elation for eight to 10km, but after that I got very tired," said Wu, who produced national records in the 3,000m and 6,000m steeplechase at October's Busan Asian Games -- though he just missed out on a medal.
"The first thing on my mind was to finish the race, but I did not think I would win, I just followed the other runners," he said.
But when he did break free just before the highest point of the race on Wensan at 600m, Wu did not let up as he motored back down the 22km route he had just climbed at speed, to the finish.
His time of two hours and 23 minutes, nine seconds was a course record and shaved over three minutes off the previous record of last year's winner Dryja, who collapsed flat on the floor with severe cramps during an interview directly after the race.
Kotau managed a second-best course record of 2:27:43, while the dehydrated Dryja was a good three minutes behind the Belarussian and was evidently struggling at the end.
Wu is generally acknowledged to be the nation's best marathon runner and said he would now take part in other major races abroad after this success.
"If Taiwanese can run more international races then we would do better because foreign competition will enhance competitiveness," Wu said.
The 44-year-old Kotau praised the resilience of Wu but said the humid conditions and climbs had caused problems.
"It was a beautiful race with spectacular views but I like flat racing because that is what I train for," Kotau said.
"Running uphill is hard work and going down you use different muscles and it wears you down.
"Before the race we [Dryja] had a plan but today the Taiwan runner was very good, too strong. Next time we will do special uphill training."
In the women's race, Japan's Miho Ichikawa tore apart the field to win in a time of 2:48:29, beating her countrywoman Harumi Noto's course record of the previous year by nearly 12 minutes.
Noto was narrowly beaten into third place this time round when Taiwan's Chen Shu-hua (陳淑華) made a final charge to take second place.
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