The Taiwan KOM Challenge is a one-day road cycling race held annually in Taiwan. Created in 2012, the event is recognized as one of the most difficult cycling races in the world due having nearly 3500m of climbing over a 105 kilometer course. Vincenzo Nibali, the 2017 winner, holds the record for the fastest time, with a time of 3:19:54.
Route The route starts in the coastal eastern city of Hualien at around sea level, heads north on Highway 9, and turns left into Highway 8, where it enters Tarako National Park, which is a deep gorge. The route gradually gains elevation as it goes westwards, ultimately ending above the clouds in Wuling, near Mt Heuhansan, which at 3275m (10,744 ft) is the highest paved road in Taiwan. Because of the significant increase in elevation, altitude sickness is a concern as well as the sudden change in temperature and weather.
Winners Men YearWinnerSecondThird 2012 John Ebsen Peter Pouly David McCann 2013 Rahim Ememi Amir Zargari Wang Yin-chih 2014 John Ebsen Ronald Yeung Ariya Phounsavath 2015 Damien Monier John Ebsen Mark Dowling 2016 Óscar Pujol Jai Hindley Ben Dyball 2017 Vincenzo Nibali Óscar Pujol John Ebsen 2018 John Ebsen Ben Dyball Damien Monier 2019 Anthon Charmig Ben Dyball Pierpaolo Ficara 2020 John Ebsen Christian Trenchev Huang Guan-Lin 2021 Feng Chun-kai Lu Shao-hsuan Huang Kuan-lin 2022 John Ebsen Huang Kuan-lin Lu Shao-hsuan 2023 Ben Dyball Jesús David Peña Sohei Kaneko 2024 Race cancelled due to risk of landslides. 2025 Feng Chun-kai Li Guan-xian He Yan-yi
Women YearWinnerSecondThird 2013 Eri Yonamine Tiffany Cromwell Lian Yin Yi Ch 2014 Marg Fedyna Qin Xin Guo Nian Wen 2015 Eri Yonamine Marg Fedyna Tseng Hsiao-chia 2016 Emma Pooley Yumiko Goda Cheung Zi Yin 2017 Emma Pooley Hayley Simmonds Emily-Grace Collinge 2018 Lucy Kennedy Emma Pooley Edwige Pitel 2019 Ashleigh Moolman Marianne Vos Kate McIlroy 2020 Kuo Chia-chi Chen Zih-yin Sandra Boesiger 2021 Zeng Ke-xin Wang Hsin-hui Chen Tzi-yin 2022 Chiu Xen-xin Cheng Shi-xuan Wang Xin-hui 2023 Shoko Kashiki Tsubasa Makise Hsu Shu-wei 2024 Race cancelled due to risk of landslides.
See also List of sporting events in Taiwan
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