The First EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon Completed!

The First EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon, jointly organized by NTU EMBA Outdoor Sports Association and NTU EMBA Iron Men, completed on Sept. 6. Among the 77 contenders from across Taiwan Strait, 46 finished the race, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University won the first place, NTU EMBA, the second, and Guizhou University, the third. All had had scheduled to meet again next year.

The EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon is a race among the elites across Taiwan Strait held in Taiwan for the first time; it includes Swimming Across the Sun Moon Lake, Cycling to Wuling, and Running through the Taroko. The race also explores the beautiful lake, mountains, and valleys of Taiwan, where the contenders may test themselves to the limit, and befriend with the elites across Taiwan Strait. Unlike the rivalry-intended Gobi Challenge, where the EMBAs from different universities compete together, this race is meant to be making friends.

A minor glitch happened in the race and gave the contenders a taste of the real deal that frequently occur in mountain highways in Taiwan. On the 4th, Tai-8 Highway, which leads from Wuling to Taroko, a rock slide caused road close. As the bicycle race of the Triathlon came to Wuling on the 5th, around 4 PM, the road would remain closed. The Triathlon organizer then decided to withdraw the contenders back to the Sun Moon Lake, where a road running race would replace instead. Despite the regretful event, the organizer was able to secure room and board for more than 100 contenders, and re-scheduling all itineraries, including the race, within a little more than 2 hours. This was a demonstration of unparalleled teamwork and efficiency, and this crisis handling won great respect from the corporate elites across the Taiwan Strait. 

Already claimed the championship of the 11th Gobi Challenge (Gobi 11), Shanghai Jiao Tong University was aiming for nothing but another number one in the first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon. With uses of strategies, Wu Zhi-Ping, manager at Spiraxsarco, UK, won the Sun Moon Lake Swimming; and Chen Guo-Lou, general manager of Shanghai Shengyuan Packaging, won the Wulin Cycling; and Mei Xiao-Jiong, person in charge of Marvell, China, won the road running at the Sun Moon Lake at 2 hours, 3 minutes, and 11 seconds.

The best experience in Taiwan was the beautiful mountain and lake, and the most beautiful being the people, while the most impressive being the organizer’s immediate response to the sudden change of plan caused by the rock slide yesterday, Mei says. May was competing in the Gobi Challenge as well in the Great Triathlon. Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s taking on Gobi Challenge was to be in the top 3, and Mei, as a contender, was determined to win so much so that he had left his wife and family and even quitted his job. Gobi Challenge was extremely stressful; it was a war, Mei says. This time, for the competition in Taiwan, he, too, took great efforts in preparations for swimming and cycling, like the way it was when preparing for Gobi Challenge. However, when in the race, he felt more friendliness rather than stress; he vowed to come again next year.

According to Lin Zheng-Zhang, Dean of College of management at National Cheng Kung University, and who took part in the Great Triathlon just to experience, he could feel that the EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon not only convey the spirit of persistence, but also friendship.

Samsung, as the official partner of the first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon, offered Galaxy Note 7, Gear 360, and Gear Fit 2 as training tools to help Professor Li Ji-Ren, Director, Creativity & Entrepreneurship Program, NTU, Liao Chang-Jian, CEO of Openfind Information Technology, Inc., and Liu Kai-Li, CEO of UBMC, to efficiently prepare for the race with digital data based, strategic pacing stamina consumption rate. Gear 360 can keep video record of the entire race for further analysis after the race. 

The first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon completed on Sep. 6. 46 out of 77 contenders from across the Taiwan Strait finished the race, including Dean Guo Ruei-Xiang; Dean of College of Management, NTU (third from right). Lin Zheng-Zhang, Dean of College of management at National Cheng Kung University (4th from right), was the award presenter. (Credit: Zhan Hui-Zhu)

77 contenders from 11 business schools across the Taiwan Strait participated in the first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon, which included Sun Moon Lake Swim, Wuling Cycling, and Taroko Road Running. 

Shanghai Jiao Tong University won the first place in the team competition of the first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon. Wu, Zhi-Ping (middle), manager at Spiraxsarco, UK, won the Sun Moon Lake Swimming; Chen Guo-Lou (left), general manager of Shanghai Shengyuan Packaging, won the Wulin Cycling; and Mei Xiao-Jiong, person in charge of Marvell, China, won the road running at the Sun Moon Lake at 2 hours, 3 minutes, and 11 seconds. (Credit: Zhan Hui-Zhu)

NTU EMBA won the second place in the team competition of the first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon. The number one team included Wang Ji-Xiang (first right), Director of End-to-End Solotion, Nokia; Ke You-Yin (2nd right), CEO of Maeden Innovation; and Liao, Chang-Jian (first left), CEO of Openfind Information Technology, Inc. (Credit: Zhan Hui-Zhu)

The organizer of the first EMBA Taiwan Great Triathlon consists of a group of EMBA students who share the passion for triathlon and Gobi Challenge; they come from technology, finance, legal, government, communication and marketing, and media sectors. Inspired with the idea of experiencing Taiwan’s majestic landscape through sports, they dedicate themselves without reservation to the exchange between the corporate elites across the Taiwan Strait.

Source: Zhan, Hui-Zhu; Economic Daily News/UDN (Sep. 6)