KUALA LUMPUR:It was sheer grit that pushed them up the staircase of the world’s second tallest building, 7,887 participants, among them an 8-year old boy and an 81-year old woman, scaled the 118 floors of the Menara Merdeka Maybank in their own way.

The IHH Sky Race which was held on Aug 22 and Aug 23 was a symbol of resilience and steadfastness.

For some, these 118 floors and 2,845 steps signify more than just a climb, especially in a month that holds much meaning to Malaysians. Because the ascend is never really about the building, it is about the indomitable spirit that a person carries with them to the top.

The youngest ascend to the top

At just 8 years old, Chua Ze Yu approached The IHH Sky Race the way many young athletes do, with curiosity and a willingness to try something new. He took part in the team category,

climbing as part of a three-member team alongside his mother and father.

When his parents asked if he wanted to take part, the answer was a simple yes. What followed was a month of supervised preparation at the apartment, practising short stair climbs with his mother and father by his side, every Tuesday.

On race day, nerves gave way to something steadier. “It was easier than what I imagined,” he shared afterward, a small but telling admission of a boy who had spent weeks preparing for something much harder.

Crossing the line in 1:11:13, Ze Yu’s message to fellow Malaysians this Merdeka is as simple as it is sincere: stay healthy, stay safe, and try new things – he is keen to encourage his friends to join next year.

Age is just a number

Long before The IHH Sky Race™ appeared on her radar, Melita Kit, 81, was already living the active lifestyle she now champions. Every day at 7:45am she and a community of over 20 friends and neighbours, her sister included, gather to walk, hike, and exercise together for a good hour. It is a regiment that has kept her strong for decades.

When her family suggested participating in The IHH Sky Race™, age did not really factor into the conversation, as her decades of hiking had already built the foundation. She took part in the team category, climbing as part of a three-member team alongside her family members. Two months of dedicated Saturday training at MBPJ’s tower followed, and on race day, Kit climbed all 118 floors with a time of 1:25:52.

“I am proud to reach the top of the tallest tower in Malaysia, because I am 81!” she said, breathless but beaming. Her message this Merdeka is a rallying cry for every generation, “Start young, stay active, and never stop moving. Selamat Hari Merdeka! Malaysia Boleh!”

Fifty years ago, a 21-year-old Jeff Linton lost both legs in a train accident in the United States, a split-second decision made with friends that changed the course of his life forever. It would have been easy for the story to end there. Instead, it became the beginning of a journey that has taken him up some of the world’s most iconic stair climbs, from Chicago’s Sears Tower to the Empire State Building, and now, for the first time outside the United States, the second tallest tower in the world.

Having flown over 24 hours from Chicago, via a gruelling 15-hour leg from Atlanta to Seoul, Linton arrived in Malaysia for the first time. The heat and humidity, he admitted with a laugh, was “brutal”, a challenge no amount of training back home could fully prepare him for. Still, he pushed through 118 floors, pausing four times, and completed the climb in 1:01:45.

“I am glad I completed the course,” he said simply. “I was telling friends I might have to let them know I could not make it, but I am happy to say I made it to the top.” Asked what drew him to Malaysia’s tallest building, his answer was refreshingly honest: it was simply the challenge of doing the second-tallest building in the world, just to be able to say he had done it.

Beyond the climb itself, Linton was quick to praise the warmth of the people he met along the way. “The people are wonderful. It has been great,” he shared, reflecting on his first visit to Malaysia. Despite travelling for more than 24 hours, he said the journey had been well worth it. The experience left him with a lasting impression of Malaysia, long after he crossed the finish line.

For Subohthini Alagesan, the amazing participant that went viral for completing the course amid support from the organisers, the IHH Sky Race™ almost didn’t happen. It was her friend Liyana, a two-time participant, who introduced her to the race and challenged her to sign up this year. But two weeks before race day, a bout of food poisoning left her badly dehydrated and without her voice, and to make matters worse, she was then diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. Pulling out seemed like the only sensible option.

Two days before the event, she changed her mind. “Why give up before I even try?” she recalled thinking, deciding to show up with a single, modest goal: to see how far she could go. Somewhere along the 118 floors, that goal shifted. The question of how far became a decision to see it through.

Crossing the finish line in 2:49:31, Subohthini said she surprised herself, quieting the self-doubt and overthinking that had built up in the lead-up to the race. What she did not expect was the company she found along the way – fellow Malaysians who encouraged and climbed alongside her to the top.

“That was the cherry on top,” she shared. “I experienced the true Malaysian spirit that day: we lift each other up and we leave no one behind.”

Her message to Merdeka is one of quiet courage: you don’t need to know if you can reach the finish line, you only need to find the courage to start. “We are much stronger and more capable than we think,” she said. “We have got this. See you at the top next year!”

The spirit of the climb was not confined to the public alone. For prominent leaders of PNB Merdeka Ventures and IHH Healthcare Malaysia, this was an opportunity to be a part of history. Datuk Izwan Ibrahim, Chief Executive Officer of PNB Merdeka Ventures Sdn Bhd took on the challenge himself, climbing the very tower his organisation calls home, completing the race in 45:35.

Dr Kamal Amzan, Chief Executive Officer of IHH Healthcare Malaysia also took part, finishing with a time of 58:36. For Dr Kamal, the climb reflected a broader message, that good health, like the race itself, is built one step at a time, a commitment IHH hopes participants carry with them well beyond race day.

A Merdeka Story, told in steps

For the second year running, Fresh Events Asia has brought The IHH Sky Race™ to life during Merdeka month, set against two landmarks that carry deep meaning for Malaysians. Stadium Merdeka is where the nation’s independence was first declared in 1957, a site that has held a place in Malaysian memory for 69 years.

Menara Merdeka Maybank, within the Merdeka 118 Precinct, now stands as Malaysia’s tallest building, a modern landmark rising beside that same history, a symbol of how far our nation has come.