Taipei, Feb. 15 (CNA) More than 2,000 runners from 27 countries will participate in a 24-hour marathon to be held in Taipei from February 25-26, the Chinese Taipei Road Running Association (CTRRA) announced at a press conference Wednesday.
"The 2006 International Association of Ultrarunners 24- Hour World Challenge will be held in Asia for the first time after taking place in Europe for the last three years, " said Sunny Chen, Secretary-General of the CTRRA, which is organizing the event.
The tournament will be the ultimate test of stamina and endurance for runners, who are required to run non-stop for 24 hours around the Yuan Shan Park. The winner will be the one who runs the longest distance within 24 hours.
A total of 229 runners from 27 countries will compete, while more than 2,000 local runners will participate in the open race group. In addition, a 12-hour open race and a 10-km open race will also be held.
Notable World Cup participants include Russian runner Anatoliy Ruglikov, who is currently No. 2 in the world rankings, and Valmir Nunez of Brazil, who ranks third.
Taiwan is sending 10 runners to the competition -- five men and five women -- with Chen Jun-yan leading the way. Chen, 40, holds Taiwan's 24-hour marathon record of 244 km.
"We're glad to have the chance to host this event after winning the bid in September 2004, " Chen said. "In 2000, we introduced the 100-km and the 24-hour marathon to Taiwan. After all these years of hard work, we have finally reaped the reward by successfully bringing the event here," he added.