Great Wall Marathon: Hongkonger pushes through bleeding nipples and burning legs using rugby ‘grit’
- Duncan Swanson climbs over 5,000 steps in first ever race on ‘stumpy legs’ as background in rugby – and ‘a lot of paracetamol’ – helps get him through
- The Scot set out to prove to his mother he too could do a marathon, but is now considering taking on more similar challenges
The Kowloon rugby player was setting out on his first running race of any kind, and had picked the brutal staircases of one of the world’s wonders.
“Being a rugby player means having a bit of grit, sometimes you have to have it for a rugby session or a game, but physically it didn’t help, with short and stumpy legs,” he said.
The race is just north of Beijing. The steep stair climbs are so gruelling that even some of the fittest runners end up using their hands to climb.
“My quads are really sore. I took a lot of paracetamol around the course, so my liver could be in trouble tomorrow. And a lot of caffeine. My legs are just shot,” he said, adding he got a second wind as he entered his second lap of the course.
In the buildup, Swanson, who is originally from Scotland, said he was happy to finally put the training behind him, citing any race over 15km as boring. He was retiring from his running career before it began. But the race itself caught his imagination.
“There was a few times when it wasn’t very pleasant but I really enjoyed it. I wasn’t going for a time, so I was just so chuffed to finish it. I think I’ll keep running, maybe the Hong Kong Marathon,” he said.
Swanson’s mother has run marathons, and he is looking forward to family bragging rights that his marathon is harder than most.
“I’ve always said I could do one, so I spitefully entered a pretty hard one,” he said. “She’s very proud but she’s slightly concerned.”
