The race, held on May 1 in Hang Dang De area of Mu Cang Chai Commune, challenged participants to scale more than 100 terraced steps over a 300-metre course across muddy, waterlogged rice paddies.
Unlike conventional flat-surface races, competitors had to climb, jump and haul themselves up embankments measuring 1.5 to 1.8 metres high, with deep mud and standing water adding to the difficulty.
Organisers said the inaugural event was designed to promote tourism and showcase the beauty of Mu Cang Chai during the annual flooding season, when rice terraces are filled with water ahead of planting.
More than 300 people took part, with experienced local participants able to complete the course in three to four minutes, while many visitors from lowland areas took seven to eight minutes due to unfamiliarity with the terrain.
Organisers said they hoped the event would become a signature tourism product for the area and help boost experiential tourism in the northwestern highlands.
The race comes amid strong tourism growth in the broader Lao Cai region, which recorded 540,000 visitors during the recent holiday period, up 19.5 per cent from a year earlier.
Tourism revenue during the holiday was estimated at VND 1.25 trillion (USD 47.5 million), while cumulative visitor arrivals to the province since the start of the year reached 5.4 million.
