Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Thursday, March 22, 2018
SCKLM2018 - 10th Anniversary Edition Set To Sizzle
Top Malaysian Runners Gather Pace Before The Big
Event
KUALA LUMPUR, March 2018: The 10th Anniversary of the Standard Chartered
KL Marathon (SCKLM) is expected to be a hotly contested event in several
categories. The Malaysian Men’s Full Marathon category in particular will see
intense competition amongst several Malaysians who have been posting
increasingly fast times in the lead up to Malaysia’s premier running event. The
Full Marathon Open category and the Malaysian Women’s Full Marathon category
are also expected to be hard fought affairs.
SCKLM2018’s Malaysian
Men’s Full Marathon category will see an intriguing battle between a few
runners in particular, namely Muhaizar Mohamad, Leo Tan, Nik Fakaruddin and Ow
Yong Jin Kuang. Muhaizar, Leo and Nik recently competed in the Tokyo Marathon
and finished spectacularly by breaking their own personal bests. Leo Tan, who
is an engineer based in Taiwan, was the first to finish and beat his previous
personal best of 2:28:19, also posted in Tokyo last year, by recording a
blistering 2:25:28, which is unofficially the new national record.
Muhaizar, in his first attempt
at an overseas marathon also performed admirably despite not being able to
travel early to Tokyo to acclimatise and having to run in close to freezing
temperatures for the first time in his life. The Armed Forces personnel also
bettered his own previous best of 2:31:52 which was posted at the KL S.E.A.
Games 2017 and which earned him Malaysia’s first medal in the Marathon for over
44 years. Muhaizar finished the Tokyo Marathon in 2:27:21, which was also
faster than the previous national record.
Nik Fakaruddin,
Muhaizar’s colleague in the Armed Forces and training partner, also smashed his
previous personal best by almost 10 minutes to post 2:31:01 in his first
attempt at an overseas marathon. Ow, who finished in third place behind
Muhaizar and Leo at SCKLM2017, could also spring a surprise as his preparation
for SCKLM2018 would have been unhindered as compared to the other three runners
who ran in the Tokyo Marathon just a few weeks ago. All four runners are in
with a shout of claiming victory at SCKLM2018 and the running community will be
eagerly waiting to see who emerges as the 2018 Malaysian Men’s Full Marathon
champion.
“In fact, all top 10
finishers of the Malaysian Men’s Full Marathon category at SCKLM2017 will be
back this year” said Rainer Biemans, Director of Dirigo Events and Project
Director of SCKLM 2018. “I’m really happy that the fastest marathon runners in
Malaysia all look to participate and perform well in SCKLM to see who is the
best in Malaysia. The level of quality that we have locally is showing signs of
advancement with Muhaizar and Leo’s rivalry in particular creating great
interest and encouragement among local runners,” he added.
A couple of other
categories at SCKLM2018 will also be generating a lot of interest come Race
Day. The Men’s Full Marathon Open category is also expected to see stiff
competition between five-time consecutive SCKLM champion Kennedy Kiproo Lilan
and the person who upstaged him last year to win, Cosmas Matolo Muteti. Both
will be back this year and Kennedy will be eager to reclaim his title from
Cosmas.
The Malaysian Women’s
Full Marathon category will also see a challenger to perennial champion and
national record holder Yuan Yufang. Annie Yee, another Malaysian who performed
well at the Tokyo Marathon by posting a personal best of 3:15:00 is expected to
give multiple winner Yufang a run for her money this time around and a new
champion might yet be crowned this year. Loh Chooi Fern, who finished second
behind Yufang in 2017 will also be running this year and hoping to do one
better at SCKLM2018. And finally, all eyes will be on the Malaysian Women’s
Half Marathon category, where Sheela Samivellu, two-time SCKLM winner and
national record holder, will be gunning to see if she can better her own mark
of 1:24:44, previously set at SCKLM2016.
“We’re expecting a
really competitive SCKLM2018 with a few categories expected to see strong
competition between the top contenders, which bodes well for the continued
success and relevance of SCKLM,” said Rainer. “It is heartening to note that
these runners want to take part in SCKLM because they want to compete against
the best, and on a fully certified course. On our part, we will do our best to
create the best conditions possible for such contests to take place,” he
continued.
The Standard Chartered
KL Marathon has grown to become the premier running event in Malaysia that
draws thousands of local and international runners to the country whilst firmly
establishing Malaysia in the global running calendar. The 2018 10th
Anniversary edition will be the largest yet with more than 38,000 runners
taking part, and will once again see sponsorship from Title Sponsor Standard
Chartered Bank Malaysia, along with Brooks, Lucozade, Seiko and Pacific
Regency.
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
Powerman 2018 - Race Review
Race Review by Wong Chin Chun
First Duathlon for 2018 - Powerman Malaysia 2018 Individual Classic ( 10km Run – 60km Bike – 10km Run). Collected the race kits and checked in my bike a day before.
On the race day, I arrived around 6am and went straight to the transition area to get my bike ready. This time I brought 3 nos of energy gel (lesson learned from Silverman 2017). I was quite nervous as this was a long endurance race.
After the race started, I realized that I forgot to put my water bottles on my bike. Luckily, the run route consists of two loops which coincidentally passed by my parking spot. On the second loop, I run back to my car to get my water bottles and continue the remaining 5km holding two water bottles, haha
The transition area was smooth and spacious with markers clearly shown at strategic location. The cycling route was quite flat with gentle elevation and good road condition. Traffic was very well managed but there was some minor congestion at the double roundabout area as the road was narrow and the Short Category's participants also joined in the race. The second and final 10km run was very torturous as the weather was very hot and humid. Luckily there was plenty of waters stations and medic on standby. I managed to hang on but started to slow down on the second loop.
In general, this was a well organised event but I think the registration fees were quite expensive for locals. This was the 1st time that we were served with coke and lemon tea after race, not sure whether it was a good option after a hard race. The organizer also served apples, bananas, hot dog breads, and nice triangle rice ball.
I am very happy with my performance today as I hit my targeted pace for both running and cycling. I finished the race with the timing of 3.33.39, 12th place in the Men age 30 – 34 category. I am very proud with my buddy (my bike) for the breakthrough today. All is well for my preparation for future races, glad for all the improvement, hopefully more to come...
* Remember to apply sun block for long endurance race ... I learned the hard way today
Photos courtesy from all photograhers, thank you.
Check result here
Thursday, March 1, 2018
Brooks Returns as Official Apparel for Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2018
SCKLM2018 Pacers to be outfitted by Brooks gear while more than 38,000 runners will receive Brooks SCKLM2018 Running Tees
KUALA LUMPUR, 28 Feb 2018: Official Apparel Sponsor Brooks returns to the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2018 (SCKLM2018) for the event’s 10 th Anniversary, providing more than 38,000 registered runners with Running Tees and outfitting SCKLM2018 Official Pacer with a complete set of running gear.
Pacers received their exclusively designed Brooks singlets with Equilibrium Technology, along with a pair of running shorts and shoes. There will be 23 Pacers assisting runners in the Full Marathon category and for the first time, there will also be another 6 Pacers for the Half Marathon category.
“We have been fortunate that our Pacers are usually returning ones,” said Gloria Ng, Director of Dirigo Events, the owner and organiser of the race. “They are all exemplary runners who have a great attitude to running and sacrifice their own race to assist others in reaching their timing goals. We started our Pacing programme for SCKLM2010 and we have Pacers who have been with us since then, so we are very grateful for their continued support” she added.
Kelvin on the other hand, has never missed SCKLM since its inception, and is now part of an exclusive group of runners called the SCKLM Juggernauts, those who’ve participated in every SCKLM since 2009. SCKLM’s 10 th Anniversary this year has special significance for him as it will also be his 10 th . “I have been running for a while now and feel that I have gained a fair amount of knowledge and experience over the years and I’ve always wanted to share and make my own contribution to the development of running in Malaysia. That’s why I’ve been coming back to SCKLM as a Pacer every year,” said Kelvin.
“This is a special year for SCKLM as it celebrates its 10 th Anniversary so we’re very happy to partner yet again with the Standard Chartered KL Marathon, the premier running event in the country,” said Victor Tiew, Brand Manager, Paragon Vest (Brooks). “We are committed to providing the best possible running experience for SCKLM participants through our innovative apparel and running shoes like the Adrenaline GTS 18 and the new Levitate range with its energised cushioning, quick transitions and intuitive fit. We wish all SCKLM Pacers and participants the best of luck on Race Day,” he added.
For more information and updates on SCKLM, please visit:
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/SCKLmarathon
Twitter : www.twitter.com/SCKLmarathon
Instagram : https://instagram.com/SCKLmarathon
Website : www.kl-marathon.com
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