North Wales author and runner tackles the famous Tokyo Tower climb with his son and daughter.
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*Pictured above - far right - NW author and runner Paul Stroud, with his son Leo and daughter Emily at the start of the Tokyo Tower climb race.
*A nervous moment for dad Paul (*above left), as his son Leo awaits the white starting flag prior to his climb up the iconic tower.
North Wales author and runner tackles the famous Tokyo Tower climb with his son Leo and daughter Emily.
Report by Don Hale. Photos by Marie Stroud.
https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com
Prolific author and keen runner Paul Stroud, who writes for the North Wales based publishers Coast & Country, and this blog, took part in the gruelling Tokyo Tower race climb last week for a second year, with his teenage son Leo, and daughter Emily.
Now based in this vibrant Japanese city, ex-pat Paul made a brave effort to tackle the 600 plus stairs at this iconic landmark, which took the athletes up to the main deck, about 150 metres above ground.
The race included many hundreds of staggered entries from individuals, corporate teams, and community groups, with various options available for participation, including sprinting, jogging, or walking, with six-second starting intervals.
This world-famous event, which offers an exhausting annual stair-climbing race, is primarily organised to raise funds for mental health initiatives and to support suicide prevention efforts.
Paul is an English language teacher, originally from Brighton, who is also an enthusiastic runner and a keen football fan, who coincided his race, with the launch of his new book – Magnificent J-League, about top soccer activity in his adopted country, and published on Amazon by the Llandudno publishing firm.
And after his race Paul confirmed just how tough this event really was: “The run was much better organised this year. They had the elite young runners go first, so they wouldn't be impeded on the stairs by slower runners, and they followed up with progressively slower groups made up of middle-aged men and women.
“Then it was the turn of seniors, and lastly the kids. It was definitely an organisational improvement on the last few times, when everybody was mixed up with faster participants getting hampered by slower ones.
“The stairs were orange metallic, and I must confess that this time, I only ran the first 250 or so steps, had to walk the other 350! My time of 5.55 mins was by far my worst to date, and it didn't help that my gym was closed for six-weeks for refurbishment, so It meant I couldn't supplement my running with the exercise bike.
“My son Leo ran his best time at 3.07 mins, which was a big improvement on his first attempt last year, and Emily came in at 4.47 mins, which was very respectable for her first attempt.”
*Above left - Flashback to last year's Tokyo Tower climb race with Paul and Leo, and (*above right), Paul Stroud's new book that coincided with the launch and his race.
*This is a link to Paul's 2024 race challenge:
Don Hale Blog: The Tokyo Tower Climb: An exclusive report by ex-p... https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025/05/the-tokyo-tower-climb-exclusive-report.html?spref=tw
*This is a link to Paul's new book book cover and blog post:
Don Hale Blog: Paul Stroud’s exciting new football book - MAGNIFI... https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025/06/paul-strouds-exciting-new-football-book.html?spref=tw
*This is an Amazon link to Paul Stroud’s new paperback book - MAGNIFICENT J-LEAGUE:
*This the Amazon link to Paul Stroud's new ebook link to the MAGNIFIECEN J-LEAGUE: https://amzn.to/45OvfH2
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