SportPlus.sg was at the Standard Chartered Singapore Race Expo to find out what makes runners tick, and why do they want to go beyond
Why do runners choose to sign-up for a grueling marathon, and what makes them want to go beyond this weekend with Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon?
SportPlus.sg social media host Muhammad Nurakif was at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon Active Lifestyle Race Expo to do a series of impromptu street interviews from race participants, and here is what some of the participants had to say.
When asked what his three running essentials for his runs were, Bayu Patria who hails from Musi Runners, a Running Club from Indonesia, shared: "My three running essentials are music, my Musi Runners t-shirt, and his running shoes." Bayu is running the Full Marathon at SCSM this year.
Umar and Hidayah, whose three year-old son Danial Harrith is participating in this year's kids dash, shared that they wanted their son to have the unique experience of joining a marathon.
"We don't think it's about winning or losing, it's just for the experience. And we have practised with him for quite a while, but in the end it really is just to encourage him to try this out."
Teo Zhihao, a Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon pacer who hails from Running Department, believes that running is a great metaphor of life and teaches people to become more resilient when they encounter challenges in life.
When asked why he thinks so, he shared: "National Service has helped the men in Singapore to become tougher than just a run."
Adam Cohen and Celia Giorgetti who hail from Luxembourg and will both be running the 10km distance, were dressed to the nines brimmed with excitement.
When asked why they came to Singapore to run, Adam said: "I love to run and I love competition, so I said why not?"
Celia echoed Adam's sentiments and added: "I love a good challenge and it is my first time. More than anything I also wanted to feel the ambience of what a race in Singapore feels like."
Runners of this year's Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon can expect a new route and an exciting new finish line at the National Stadium, Singapore Sports Hub.
Some 50,000 runners are expected to descend upon the F1 Pit Building startline this weekend across all events of Singapore's national marathon, as it returns as an IAAF World Athletics Gold Label race.