From Age 4 to 83: A Stage for Sharing and Challenge at the 'Lotte World Tower Skyrun'

The Tallest Vertical Marathon in Korea
2,200 Participants Including Firefighters and Coast Guard Officers
All Participation Fees Donated to Rehabilitation for Children with Disabilities

Lotte Corporation announced on April 20 that all participation fees collected from the 2026 Lotte World Tower Skyrun—the country’s highest vertical marathon held on April 19 and featuring 2,200 competitors of various ages—were donated to a rehabilitation center for children with disabilities.

At the 2026 Lotte World Tower Skyrun Elite Division Awards Ceremony, Jaehoon Jang, CEO of Lotte Engineering & Construction (fourth from the right), is taking a commemorative photo with the male division first-place winner Ryoji Watanabe (Japan, third from the right), the female division first-place winner Yuko Tateishi (Japan, fifth from the right), and other awardees. Provided by Lotte Engineering & Construction

The Skyrun is a competition in which participants climb 2,917 steps from the 1st to the 123rd floor of Lotte World Tower in Songpa-gu, Seoul, covering a vertical height of 555 meters. This year, firefighters in fire suits, coast guard officers in life jackets, children with cerebral palsy, a four-year-old accompanied by a parent, and the oldest-ever participant at 83 years old all competed in the elite and general categories. There were also international participants from 20 countries, including the United States, Mexico, France, the Philippines, and Malaysia. The challenge taken on by Kang Kyubin, a 13-year-old with cerebral palsy who participated for the second consecutive year, moved many people.

In the elite division, which features past winners from the last three years, Ryoji Watanabe (Japan) took first place in the men’s category with a time of 16 minutes and 8 seconds, while Yuko Tateishi (Japan) won the women’s category with a time of 21 minutes and 19 seconds. Both winners received a commemorative gold coin weighing 5.55 grams, symbolizing the 555-meter height of Lotte World Tower.

Ryoji Watanabe (Japan, third from the right), who won first place in the men's elite division at the 2026 Lotte World Tower Skyrun, is crossing the finish line. Provided by Lotte Corporation

All finishers received a finisher’s kit, which included a commemorative medal, a digital certificate of completion, drinks, and snacks. The total participation fee of approximately 100 million won will be donated to the Bobath Children’s Rehabilitation Center to support children’s rehabilitation.

Lee Mihyun, leader of Lotte Corporation’s marketing team, stated, “The goal of Skyrun is to create an open field for challenge for everyone,” adding, “We hope many more people will be able to achieve their individual goals through Skyrun in the future.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.