Malaysian participant is relishing Rotorua Marathon experience

Published 16 January 2024

Hew Chui Wong will one of a number of overseas athletes set to compete in the 60th anniversary Rotorua Marathon fuelled by the thrill of appearing in the landmark event.

Motivated partly by her love of Lord of the Rings, the Malaysian opted to book a two-week holiday to New Zealand for her first post-Covid trip but as a keen runner she was also enthused by the prospect of taking on a marathon while in Aotearoa.

“After my first overseas marathon in Hong Kong, I told myself that if I ever got the chance to travel to another country on vacation, I must include a run in my itinerary. My friend and I have this term 'Runcation' combination of Run and Vacation. So, when I search for running event in New Zealand, Rotorua Marathon pops up. Since it stated 60th anniversary, I told myself it must be a grand event which I shall not miss, thus without hesitation, I signed myself up. And of course, the marathon happens to fall during our travel period.”

“Super excited” to be visiting New Zealand for the first time, the 39-year-old, who works for a healthcare solutions company, is looking forward to experiencing the mountains and has booked a two-day trek with her friend as part of the holiday.

Starting marathon running late she has competed in nine marathons – including in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan - plus countless half marathons.

“My biggest regret so far was that I got myself a slot in Berlin Marathon 2020 but did not manage to go even because of Covid and then I could not compete the following due to injury,” she adds.

Largely inactive from running for three years the Petaling Jaya-based woman – about 20 minutes away from Kuala Lumpur - hopes the marathon will “kickstart” her running journey.

With her friend Soo Wei Ngoi entered in the Go Media 10km it promises to be a rich experience for both, so what does she hope to achieve at the Rotorua Marathon on 4 May?

“Frankly speaking, I have no expectation,” she says. “Sometimes when you do not have expectation, then there will be no disappointment. I will just enjoy the run around the lake and hopefully can complete within the cut off time.”