Andes Leung Pak-hang, the co-founder and CEO of race organisers Run Our City, said initial feedback from runners had been “very positive”, although not everyone agreed.

This year marked the first time the event included a marathon, which started in the dark at 5am, and Leung admitted there was room for improvement.

“This is the first time we run around Victoria Harbour to promote Hong Kong to overseas or non-Hong Kong runners,” he said. “We also had a new 10k route that went past some of the city’s major building sites.

“There is still a lot to improve, but safety always comes first and with the positive results I was quite satisfied.”

Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki attended the starting ceremony and said the event would help to “demonstrate Hong Kong’s extraordinary vitality”.

“The government shall continue to work closely with all sectors of society to promote sports in the community and build Hong Kong into a more dynamic and liveable city,” Chan said.

He added that “it’s been quite cold, but from what I can see, it didn’t affect the atmosphere of the event at all”.

Some runners, however, questioned the “extremely early” start time and suggested the route was the “most difficult” to run, compared to other races in the city.

Penny Cheng Kai-man, who was running his 15th marathon, questioned why they had needed to start so early, when “those races in Japan or Europe always start after 9am”.

“With over 70 per cent of the first 10 kilometres located inside the [Central–Wan Chai Bypass] tunnel, I am sure someone would have fainted if not for the cool weather today,” the 44-year-old said. “The roads on other overpasses are narrow and its tilted design makes it a really difficult run.”

Alex Yu Hoi-kit won the men’s marathon in two hours, 38 minutes and 27 seconds, while Wong Mei-po took the women’s title in 3:14:12. The men’s half-marathon title was taken by Li Shing in 1:19:19, with Mak Ka-lee coming home in 1:27:20 in the women’s race.

The 10km that started in Lohas Park and took in the Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel and Cross Bay Link for the first time was a quick race, with Charles Dutertre first across the line in 33:09 and Hannah Bainbridge winning the women’s run in 41:25.

Among others taking part was top ultra-runner Wong Ho-chung.

“Our running club [The Peak Hunter] has some kids, including my elder son, serving as volunteers at the 18km mark just before the Eastern Harbour Tunnel,” he said. “So, I put my name down for the event, just to run past the checkpoint to show support and praise them for their effort.

“The purpose was to let them experience some large-scale events, but more importantly, to learn to serve others, and understand the hardships and difficulties behind them.

“Hopefully, they will then learn to cherish others’ support and help for their growth, it’s actually a very meaningful, educational work.”

Despite the cold weather, the former 4 Deserts Ultramarathon Series champion said conditions had been “suitable”, even though he did not run the full distance.

“I was preoccupied with something else so I told the organisers I would leave after passing the [Eastern Harbour Tunnel] checkpoint,” Wong said. “But, I am glad to be part of this, I think it’s a great event, it’s a comfortable run and the route was more fun than I imagined.”

“My goal is to cultivate the next generation of young cross-country runners, seeing them do well makes me happy, even more so than achieving good results for myself,” he said.