Marathon Showdown in Singapore

News reported in today's Straits Times, I guess those who had ran in the previous races will be interested to read. Personally, I prefered the race to be organized by SAA, as SSC together with Standard Chartered Bank are getting too commercialized, their main concern are just getting more participants and making more money in the process, imagine how difficult it will be to accommodate 60k runners (most are in for a walk) on the actual day!

Having took part every year since 2003, I knew exactly how the running experience had been compromised in the last few years.. there are just too many participants, last year a total of 14,255 finished the full marathon! With 50k participants in all categories, fast runners complained of 10km & 21.1km runners blocking their way in the last few kilometres, and insufficent power gels.

A summarised report by Terrence Voon.

Marathon Showdown

Feuding SSC (Singapore Sports Council) and SAA (Singapore Athletic Association) apply to stage their marathons on Dec 5

A battle of the marathons is shaping up in Singapore at the end of the year.

This, after the Singapore Athletic Association (SAA) confirmed that it is planning to stage a race on Dec 5 - the same date which had been earmarked for the inaugural Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore. (previously known as SCSM, Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon)

Both the SAA and the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) - who are behind the new Marathon Singapore have met separately with the Land Transport Authority and the Traffic Police to obtain persmission for the events.

It is understood that only one race will get the green light from the authorities, owing to the excessive road closures caused by having two marathons on the same day.

The clash of dates is the latest chapter in the ongoing feud between the SSC and SAA, who have been at odds since the athletics body had its public funding frozen since last April.

The two parties had jointy organised the Singapore Marathon since 2002, but that partnership was dissolved after last year's 42km race.

The SSC 's event touted as the People's Marathon, was announced in a hail of publicity last month.

However, SAA CEO, stressed that the door was not closed for the two parties to work together on a joint event.

The new race is set to feature 60,000 runners and registration has been slated to open in June. It is believed that the proposed route will take participants through iconic areas such as Orchard Road and Chinatown.

As for the SAA it is likely that the layout for its race will mirror that of previous editions, featuring the Central Business Park District and East Coast Park.

Both marathons are expected to end at the Padang.

As a senior local sports official said:" Having two marathons on the same day is a non-starter. The authorities won't allow it, too many roads will be closed and the running community will be divided. It's now the case of who blinks first. Whoever gets permission from the authorities will obviously have the upper hand."

Another sticking point is that the SSC needs the SAA - a national body recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations - to endorses its race.

The association's endorsement is required to allow foreign elite runners to complete here. The SAA has since received a sanction request from the SCC, but has remained non-committal on whether it will back the rival event.