A Celebration of SCMS Runners and their Stories
Official launch of Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore 2015 sees runners from across the spectrum come together to celebrate Golden Jubilee year
Singapore’s largest annual mass participation event, the Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore (SCMS) 2015, was officially launched today, marking the countdown to Asia’s marquee distance running event which will take place over the weekend of 5-6 December 2015.
Under the banner of ‘This year, we race as one’, a host of runners, each with a very different story to tell, came together to announce the schedule for the event’s special Jubilee year celebration.
SCMS 2015 will also see one of the most significant changes in the event’s history: Kids Dash has evolved as a standalone event slated forSaturday, 5 December. It will be held at the iconic Sports Hub, which will also host of the ASEAN Para Games (APG) in December.
SCMS aims to deliver a weekend-long running fiesta which encourages greater participation amongst junior runners on Saturday, while preserving the Marathon’s status as a world-class multi-distance race on Sunday.
The remaining adult categories – Marathon, Half Marathon, 10km run and Ekiden – will continue to take place on Sunday 6 December.
The first 200 registrants at the SCMS Launch Event were rewarded for their efforts with a 50% discount off the registration fee, and a commemorative Golden Bib to mark what will be the last major sporting event of SG50.
Now in its 14th year, SCMS is an event synonymous not just with elite distance running, but also community, charity, and personal achievement. Over the years the event has seen hundreds of thousands of runners take to the streets in the various disciplines and in 2014 alone, raised in excess of S$ 370,000 for charitable causes.
The IAAF Gold Label Road Race has provided inspiration for countless individuals to overcome personal challenges while providing joy and entertainment for thousands more. Representing the different facets of the race, were some familiar faces – as well as some equally notable costumes – including Singaporean Olympian distance runner and former national record holder PC Suppiah.
The legendary bare-foot runner was joined on stage by 1973 SEA Games gold medalist, K Jayamani; Gerrard Lin who has raised over S$100,000 for the Bone Marrow Donor Programme over the years; and fun-runner Jenap M Said who has run 51 full marathons and won numerous fancy dress competitions in the process.
Speaking about the significance of SCMS 2015, Neeraj Swaroop, Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore said: “2015 is a special Jubilee Year for Singapore. We are a nation of people who have played a part in shaping Singapore’s success. In the same token, hundreds of thousands of runners have each played a role to keep Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore going strong.”
“SCMS 2015 is about our runners and our common passion that unites us. We look forward to a fitting celebration of SG50 on the weekend of 5-6 December, and we wish every runner the very best,” added Swaroop.
The man better known for dragging a tyre around the 42km course, Gerrard Lin, who had chosen to queue through the night to secure his limited edition Golden Bib, added: In addition to raising funds for the Bone Marrow Donor Program, I will be coaching a number of first-timers running for a cause at this year’s Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore. I hope I’ll be able to impart some knowledge and give them some inspiration to run for something they truly believe in.”
The launch of SCMS also saw the successful debut of Singapore’s first ever Digital Queue which opened on 29 June, enabling participants to get ahead in the SCMS registration process using the hashtags #SCMS2015 and #DIGITALQUEUE on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The initiative attracted some 2,170 hopeful runners sharing over 20,000 comments, posts and tweets and saw participants win points on the basis of how active they were on social media. The competition was won by Zac Chen who accumulated 45,140 points, making 400 posts and receiving over 3,000 likes.
Another popular running blogger, Pris Chew, also featured in the top ten. In a first for SCMS, the top ten ranked participants from the Digital Queue will start from the First Pen on the start line, while the top 100 will get to run their chosen category for free.
Tickets for the general public go on sale today (Thursday 9 July) with a new pricing structure that sees the introduction of different ticket prices for Residents and Non-Residents. With Super Early Bird tickets now available to the general public, runners will be able to secure their place on the start line for the Marathon for S$70, the Half Marathon for S$65, 10km Run for S$55 and Kids Dash for $15.
To encourage those aged 55 and above to lead an active lifestyle, ActiveSG will also credit $15 from the registration fee back to participants’ accounts as ActiveSG dollars, one month after the event.
Additionally all runners who competed in SCMS 2014 will receive a 10% discount on registration fees across all categories. Standard Chartered Bank cardholders will receive 15% off the normal registration fee, while international visitors will be able to benefit from preferential rates for participants at the SCMS Official Hotel, Hotel Jen.
Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore is sponsored by: Standard Chartered (Title sponsor); Adidas (Official Apparel Sponsor); Seiko (Official Timekeeper); 100plus (Official Isotonic Drink); Land Rover (Official Car); TCS (Official IT Consultancy); Hotel Jen @Orchardgateway (Official Hotel); Running Department (Official Pacers); Journey Fitness (Official Coach); Swisse (Official Vitamin); 2XU (Official Compression Sponsor); Tomtom (Official GPS Training Device); PSB Academy (Official Supplier)
For more information and details on Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore 2015, see www.marathonsingapore.com
