KUCHING – Sarawakian ultra-athlete Sally Yap has qualified for the World Mountain and Trail Running Championship in Innsbruck-Stubai, Austria in June.
This will be her second appearance in the world championship.
Yap will be working to improve on last year’s effort, where she failed to finish as she was disqualified.
She is also hoping to qualify for August’s Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc in France.
“I am training hard to ensure that every event I go to brings me good results so that I can qualify for bigger events,” she told a press conference today to announce Hock Seng Lee’s (HSL) sponsorship for a second consecutive year.
Yap is following a punishing fitness schedule of running over 100km between Monday and Friday and completing 2,000m elevation training on weekends at Mt Singgai and Mt Serapi.
To prepare for Austria, Yap will also fly to Sabah next month for training at the foot of Mt Kinabalu.
“Without generous sponsors like HSL, I would not be able to take part in these international events. HSL began sponsoring me last year in the Mt Apo Sky Race in the Philippines and I am thankful for the company’s financial support,” said the 30-year-old Yap, who is a university lecturer.
“The sponsorship means a lot as ultra-marathoning is a niche sport in Malaysia.”
Corporate communications manager Sophia Ong said HSL is proud to be sponsoring Yap again.
“She is truly deserving of this company’s support,” Ong said.
“She is an inspiration to us all and a great example of consistency being the critical driver for success. We are fans and follow her events virtually.”
Ong called on other private companies and the Sarawak government to sponsor Yap for international events.
Yap added that over the next few months, she will be conducting motivational talks and fitness clinics at La Promenade Mall.
“All these events will be free, for me to contribute back to society.
“HSL does a lot of community events. Last year, they organised the Fitness Weekend, which included a half marathon. They also did fun runs such as the year-end School Holiday Night Run and I participated in all of them,” she said.
Some of Yap’s achievements include a fourth-place finish in an ultra-trail event in Thailand, where she completed a 112km route with 5,698m of elevation in 23 hours and 39 minutes; second place in Borneo Ultra Trail Marathon in Sabah in 22 hours and 15 minutes for the 108km course; finishing third in Penang’s Komtar Tower Climb after scaling 68 floors in 11 minutes and 53 seconds; and coming in third at the Miri Marathon with a time of three hours and 36 minutes in the 42km full marathon. – The Borneo Post, April 19, 2023
