(From left) Liz Kamaruddin, Lili Suhairi, Viola Chepleting, Munyaradzi Jari & Rainer Biemans
Kuala Lumpur, 27 September 2013 – The Standard Chartered KL Marathon held a pre-race press conference of elite runners yesterday, just two days before the Marathon, bringing together all three elite athletes all the way from the African countries and Malaysia to Pacific Regency. The elite athletes arrived a few days before race day to start their acclimatisation process.
It’s been said that all it takes to be effective is to find someone else who has achieved what you want, and do what they do. In this vein, there are incredible insights to be gained from the success of these elite runners.
More than 3,600 foreign nationalities from 73 different countries will be part of the 33,000 runners participating in the Standard Chartered KL Marathon this year. The Standard Chartered KL Marathon has played a tremendous part in Malaysia gaining a foothold in the world of sports with the continuous achievements by international and national athletes for the past four (4) years in the KL Marathon.
“As an iconic race in Malaysia, the Standard Chartered KL Marathon has placed the nation on the global running map. International and local runners have the opportunity to compete and navigate a challenging route covering historical landmarks around the city of Kuala Lumpur. We have a great blend of very talented athletes that have performed on grand stages around the world. I am sure this will set for some notable competition in this year’s Marathon,” said Rainer Biemans, Project Director of the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2013.
Liz Kamaruddin, Country Head of Corporate Affairs, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia added, “The blend of international experts and local talents coupled with the experience and best practices garnered from Standard Chartered nine marathons worldwide has contributed to the success of the KL Marathon. The values of the Marathon of perseverance, going the distance and commitment to excellence are synonymous with our values. We are proud to be part of this significant country event.”
When the word “challenge” was mentioned at the press conference - there was little doubt route and conditions are about to play a huge part in the 5th edition of the Marathon that starts bright and early this Sunday with start of the Full Marathon at 4.30am. Athletes took time out to speak with the media, check out what they had to say below.
“My objective for the upcoming Standard Chartered Kuala Lumpur Marathon is to win first place in the race and, of course try my best to break the previous year’s record. I have been training consistently in Zimbabwe before I arrived in Malaysia and hopefully, the result will be a positive one,” said Munyaradzi Jari from Zimbabwe during the press conference.
Viola Chepleting Bor from Kenya added that, “The environment condition in Malaysia is generally good for running, so this may help to achieve my personal best at the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2013.”
In a world of constant change, the fundamentals are more vital than ever. The Standard Chartered KL Marathon will continue to grow the sport’s culture in Malaysia making it an important part in nation building. With the theme, “Run for a Reason”, this year’s Marathon comprises of 19 categories; provides participation opportunities for all walks of life to run with different and unique reasons.
“With 33,000 enthusiasts running the Marathon, every one of them has a victorious story. One of the more rewarding aspects of organising the Marathon was putting our arms around the remarkable accomplishments of some of these runners – from raising funds for charity, remembering lost loved ones, losing significant amounts of weight to attempting to set a world record,” added Biemans.
The Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2013 is again made possible by title sponsor Standard Chartered Bank, in partnership with the event owner and organiser, Dirigo Events Sdn Bhd, and co-organiser, Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL) with strong support from the Ministry of Youth and Sports; and gold sponsors MSIG and Honda.
The Marathon will start and end at one of Malaysia’s most historical sites in the city, Dataran Merdeka on 29 September 2013.
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