Remember those days as a child when you couldn’t help but run up stairs, two or three at a time.

You often didn’t know (or care) what you would find at the top. You were just excited to get there in a burst of energy, wrapped in the sheer joy of running.

That same exhilaration still exists. In Paris last week, running up stairs (two or three at a time) took center stage—during the 5^thannual Eiffel Tower Vertical race.

La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel—one of the most challenging tower races in the world—made one of the most amazing places in the world even more thrilling.

The Vertical Challenge

The 1,665 steps, which gain 276 meters (three football fields) in altitude, make this one of the most difficult races in tower running—a vertical tour that includes such skyscrapers as One World Trade Center in New York (2,226 steps), the Lotte World Tower in Seoul (2,917 steps), the International Commerce Center in Hong Kong (2,120 steps), and the Jumeirah Emirates Towers in Dubai (1,334 steps).

Only 130 runners were accepted into the Paris race this year—one runner for each year of the Eiffel Tower’s existence. (The Eiffel Tower was built in 1889 for the Universal Exposition. With just a bit of math calculation: In 2018, the race hosted 129 runners, and for 2020 . . . 131 runners.)

Of the 90 men and 40 women selected, 40 are elite runners, 80 are amateurs, and 10 are wild-card recipients.

Jean-Charles Perrin—founder of La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel and EcoTrail International CEO—is rightfully proud. “There are tower races in many countries, but creating a race at such an iconic monument makes it special.”

The Eiffel Tower is the tallest structure in Paris and one of the most visited monuments on the planet. It took years of negotiations to bring the race to this historic tower.

What also makes the Eiffel Tower so special are the unique challenges for the competitors. It’s the only tower race that is outside—open to the elements.

Add to that the complexity of spiral stairs (some so narrow that no runner can pass another), steps of varying sizes, and a combination of stairs and flat stretches—from one staircase to the next, from one floor to the next, or as runners move from the south pillar to the west pillar for the climb.

The stairs from the second to the third étage are not open to the public, so the runners have the unique privilege of climbing these stairs in the last leg of the race.

Oh, I see. This is one tough race. But the expansive view of Paris at the top is well worth the climb.

A Dramatic History

The Eiffel Tower has the distinction of hosting the first-ever stair climbing race more than 100 years ago.

In 1905, a daily sports newspaper organized the “Stair Championship,” which attracted more than 300 participants to climb two levels of the Eiffel Tower (only 729 steps rather than the three levels and 1,665 steps of today).

A magnet for daredevil activities, the Eiffel Tower also lays claim to the world’s oldest elephant trying to climb the stairs, athletes racing up the stairs on mountain bikes, people descending the stairs via wheelchair, and the inevitable illegal parachuting or bungie jumping from the tower.

The famous French high-wire artist, Philippe Petit, walked from the Palais de Chaillot to the second floor of the tower via tightrope in 1989 (to celebrate the 200^thanniversary of the French Revolution).

2019: Under Eight Minutes!

This year’s story was no less dramatic. The good news was . . . it wasn’t raining. The bad news was . . . it was cold and the wind was fierce. The top of the Eiffel Tower was swaying.

The race was delayed by 30 minutes as the organizers waited for the wind to subside and debated whether to make this a “race to the middle” rather than a “race to the top.”

The race is in time trial format, with a runner in the starting block every 30 or 60 seconds.

Support shouts of “Allez! Allez! Courage!”could be heard at every turn as, one by one, each of the 130 racers did their best to manage their breathing and overcome muscle pain, dizziness, and burning lungs to reach the top—a finish line with a view.

The 1^stplace winners of the 2019 Eiffel Tower Vertical were Piotr Lobodzinski from Poland (7:53:97) and Suzy Walsham from Australia (10:16:57). Not surprisingly, both are the reigning world champions in tower running. More results can be found here.

They were pleased with their race, given the challenging conditions. And, as Piotr said when he received his award, he hopes, like fine wine, he will just get better with age.

It is certain that more amazing places in the world—the tall ones, especially—will continue to attract these super athletes. Congratulations to all.

Health Note: Research shows that climbing stairs has significant health benefits. You don’t have to enter The Eiffel Tower Vertical race, but if you take the stairs every now and then, you’ll be the beneficiary.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

$\"Night$

A hint of the moon on the night of the Eiffel Tower Vertical race
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n

One of the Most Amazing Places in the World Rises to the Challenge<\/h2>\n
Remember those days as a child when you couldn\u2019t help but run up stairs, two or three at a time.<\/p>\n
You often didn\u2019t know (or care) what you would find at the top. You were just excited to get there in a burst of energy, wrapped in the sheer joy of running.<\/p>\n
That same exhilaration still exists. In Paris last week, running up stairs (two or three at a time) took center stage\u2014during the 5^{th\u00a0<\/sup>annual Eiffel Tower Vertical race.<\/p>\n}
La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel\u2014<\/em>one of the most challenging tower races in the world\u2014made one of the most amazing places in the world even more thrilling.<\/p>\n
$\"Two$
Moments of joy at La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel 2019
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
The Vertical Challenge<\/h4>\n
The race is legendary. Tower runners from all continents vie to participate.<\/p>\n
$\"Eiffel$
The 1,665 steps of the Eiffel Tower become even more challenging on the night of the race.
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
The 1,665 steps, which gain 276 meters (three football fields) in altitude, make this one of the most difficult races in tower running\u2014a vertical tour that includes such skyscrapers as One World Trade Center in New York (2,226 steps), the Lotte World Tower in Seoul (2,917 steps), the International Commerce Center in Hong Kong (2,120 steps), and the Jumeirah Emirates Towers in Dubai (1,334 steps).<\/p>\n
$\"International$
Tower running reaches new heights, including the International Commerce Center in Hong Kong.
\u00a9 bpperry\/iStock<\/p><\/div>\n
Only 130 runners were accepted into the Paris race this year\u2014one runner for each year of the Eiffel Tower\u2019s existence. (The Eiffel Tower was built in 1889 for the Universal Exposition. With just a bit of math calculation: In 2018, the race hosted 129 runners, and for 2020 . . . 131 runners.)<\/p>\n
Of the 90 men and 40 women selected, 40 are elite runners, 80 are amateurs, and 10 are wild-card recipients.<\/p>\n
$\"Janet$
Australian Janet Goodwin, a wild-card recipient and stair-climbing trainer,
flew 22 hours just for the race.
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
Jean-Charles Perrin\u2014founder of La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel <\/em>and EcoTrail International CEO\u2014is rightfully proud. “There are tower races in many countries, but creating a race at such an iconic monument makes it special.”<\/p>\n
The Eiffel Tower is the tallest structure in Paris and one of the most visited monuments on the planet. It took years of negotiations to bring the race to this historic tower.<\/p>\n
$\"Jean-Charles$
Jean-Charles Perrin, the founder of La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel, cheers on the runners.
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
What also makes the Eiffel Tower so special are the unique challenges for the competitors. It\u2019s the only tower race that is outside\u2014open to the elements.<\/p>\n
Add to that the complexity of spiral stairs (some so narrow that no runner can pass another), steps of varying sizes, and a combination of stairs and flat stretches\u2014from one staircase to the next, from one floor to the next, or as runners move from the south pillar to the west pillar for the climb.<\/p>\n
$\"ECOTRAILORGA_CHRISTOPHEGUIARD_Laurent$
French runner Laurent Vincente surrounded by the structure of “The Iron Lady”
Photo courtesy of the EcoTrail Organization<\/p><\/div>\n
The stairs from the second to the third \u00e9tage<\/em>\u00a0<\/i>are not open to the public, so the runners have the unique privilege of climbing these stairs in the last leg of the race.<\/p>\n
Oh, I see.\u00a0<\/strong>This is one tough race. But the expansive view of Paris at the top is well worth the climb.<\/p>\n
$\"ECOTRAILORGA_CHRISTOPHEGUIARD,$
Fighting for the reward at the top: a finish line with a view.
Photo courtesy of the EcoTrail Organization<\/p><\/div>\n
A Dramatic History<\/h4>\n
The Eiffel Tower has the distinction of hosting the first-ever stair climbing race more than 100 years ago.<\/p>\n
In 1905, a daily sports newspaper organized the \u201cStair Championship,\u201d which attracted more than 300 participants to climb two levels of the Eiffel Tower (only 729 steps rather than the three levels and 1,665 steps of today).<\/p>\n
$\"Stairs$
The Eiffel Tower stairs have always called to adventurers.
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
A magnet for daredevil activities, the Eiffel Tower also lays claim to the world\u2019s oldest elephant trying to climb the stairs, athletes racing up the stairs on mountain bikes, people descending the stairs via wheelchair, and the inevitable illegal parachuting or bungie jumping from the tower.<\/p>\n
The famous French high-wire artist, Philippe Petit, walked from the Palais de Chaillot to the second floor of the tower via tightrope in 1989 (to celebrate the 200^{th<\/sup>anniversary of the French Revolution).<\/p>\n}
$\"Group$
Let the race begin!
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
2019: Under Eight Minutes!<\/h4>\n
This year\u2019s story was no less dramatic. The good news was . . . it wasn\u2019t raining. The bad news was . . . it was cold and the wind was fierce. The top of the Eiffel Tower was swaying.<\/p>\n
The race was delayed by 30 minutes as the organizers waited for the wind to subside and debated whether to make this a \u201crace to the middle\u201d rather than a \u201crace to the top.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not a chance. La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel\u00a0<\/em>is a race about summiting.<\/p>\n
$\"Runner$
It’s all about reaching the top.
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
Let the challenge begin.<\/p>\n
The race is in time trial format, with a runner in the starting block every 30 or 60 seconds.<\/p>\n
$\"Runner$
Keeping track of time in the race agains the clock
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
Support shouts of \u201cAllez! Allez! Courage!\u201d<\/em>could be heard at every turn as, one by one, each of the 130 racers did their best to manage their breathing and overcome muscle pain, dizziness, and burning lungs to reach the top\u2014a finish line with a view.<\/p>\n
$\"Piotr$
Men’s winner Piotr Lobodzinski stays strong throughout the race, finishing in under eight minutes.
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
The 1^{st\u00a0<\/sup>place winners of the 2019 Eiffel Tower Vertical were Piotr Lobodzinski from Poland (7:53:97) and Suzy Walsham from Australia (10:16:57). Not surprisingly, both are the reigning world champions in tower running. More results can be found here.<\/a><\/p>\n}
$\"ECOTRAILORGA_ANTHONYCHAUMONTEL_VTE2019_Suzy$
Suzy Walsham’s focused race brought her another victory.
Photo courtesy of the EcoTrail Organization<\/p><\/div>\n
They were pleased with their race, given the challenging conditions. And, as Piotr said when he received his award, he hopes, like fine wine, he will just get better with age.<\/p>\n
It is certain that more amazing places in the world\u2014the tall ones, especially\u2014will continue to attract these super athletes. Congratulations to all.<\/p>\n
$\"The$
Congratulations to all!
\u00a9 Meredith Mullins<\/p><\/div>\n
For more information about the Eiffel Tower Vertical, visit La Verticale de la Tour Eiffel website, <\/a>the EcoTrail website,<\/a> and the Towerrunning World Association<\/a> website.<\/em><\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/em>Health Note: Research shows that climbing stairs has significant health benefits. You don\u2019t have to enter The Eiffel Tower Vertical race, but if you take the stairs every now and then, you’ll be the beneficiary.<\/em><\/p>\n
Comment<\/a><\/i>\u00a0on this post below, or inspire insight with your own\u00a0OIC Moment\u00a0<\/em>here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":null,"protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":33613,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[221,200,222],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adventure-travel","category-france-mappoints","category-hiking-travel"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33593"}],"version-history":[{"count":40,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33664,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33593\/revisions\/33664"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}