More than 44,000 runners, including 8,000 overseas runners from over 70 countries, took to the streets of Singapore last weekend for the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon (SCSM), making it a truly global race.

This included elites, marathon veterans and first-timers, so there were runners from all walks of life.  

Taking part in the full marathon 

I was one of them, and I participated in the Full Marathon category. 

To date, I have taken part in the full marathon at this event since 2013, with the exception of the pandemic years.

Local and international elites are back

As well, the 2023 event saw the return of the World Athletics Gold Label race and the Singapore National Championships. So the international and local elite runners were back in full force to run SCSM.

Some of the top names included David Barmasai Tumo of Kenya and Bahrain’s Rose Chelimo, as well as Singaporean elites Rachel See, Soh Rui Yong and Jasmine Goh.

Flagging off at 4:30am

Both the full and the half marathons were scheduled to flag off together at 4:30am with the start line at the F1 Pit building.

Dropping off 

Runners had been instructed to alight at designated drop off points. Millennia Tower was the one that would be most convenient for me, so I dropped off there and walked down a few hundred metres to the start. With so many runners heading in the same direction, it was impossible to be lost.

As there were large crowds of people waiting for the traffic light at Millennia Tower, marshals were put in place to keep the crowd moving orderly and ensure that everything was smooth like clockwork. 

We finish inside the National Stadium

The race finish line was different to the start this year.

It would be inside the iconic Singapore National Stadium, a first-ever for the SCSM. Running into the stadium was something that I was particularly looking forward to.

Arriving in good time 

I reached the F1 Pit Building in good time, before 3:30am, and the toilet queues were not too long yet. I waited for less than ten minutes for my turn.

I also spent time catching up and taking photos with the friends whom I was able to find – it was great to see so many people out and about, preparing to run either a half or a full marathon. 

Baggage deposit was available at $15 to $18 per person. I opted not to purchase this as I did not feel that it was necessary for me to do so.

Race pen not too busy  

I went into my race pen at about 4am. So far there was lots of space and I was able to find a good spot at the front. It only started to feel more crowded at around 4:15am so it was good I had went in early.

At around 4:20am, the emcee announced that there would be a 15-minute delay to flag off the race, so the new start time was now 4:45am. 

Flagging off 

The first wave and the elites were flagged off sharp at 4:45am. The rest of us were flagged off progressively, with each subsequent wave starting about 2 minutes apart. I started my own race at 4:52am according to my watch.

Simple race strategy 

I had a very simple race strategy this time: follow the four hour pacers and hang on as long as I could. My finish time at SCSM last year had been 4:00:09 to be precise, and I wanted to avenge those 10 seconds by going under four hours this time.

They were running at a consistent pace of 5:40 mins per kilometre, which tied in well with my own beliefs of running even splits in a full marathon.

Scenic city route

The route was a city route taking us past many of Singapore’s iconic landmarks such as the Singapore Flyer, Marina Bay Sands, War Memorial Park, Esplanade and the Gardens by the Bay. 

The first half brought us towards town and through the Central Business District, and then we hit West Coast Highway. This section of the run was the same for both the half and the full marathon routes.

Along the way, I saw many familiar friends who were also running as well as the elite runners on the other side of the long out-and-back. It was nice to see faces whom I recognised. 

It was quite fascinating to see the elites whiz past and watch how fast they go. These guys can easily and effortlessly running a full marathon in half the time I would do it in.

The first half of the race was great fun. The pacers were keeping me on pace, the pace itself was comfortable and I was breathing easily without feeling stressed or overwhelmed. 

Nutrition and Hydration

The nutrition and hydration stations along the way were good, but I did think that perhaps the tables could have been longer in length in order to prevent runners from banging into one another while trying to grab a cup and go without breaking stride.

There was both water and 100PLUS (non-carbonated) and a few select stations also had bananas, energy gels, ice and Tiger Balm spray. The provision of supplies and amenities were good and everything had been thought of. 

The water served was ice-cold and I found myself taking small sips of the water, then I poured the rest of the cup down my head and body in order to keep myself cool.

When running in tropical climates, the body tends to heat up quickly, so staying cool is always key to keep going. 

The ice cubes provided were less useful than the water because when I poured this down my back, I found that it just slid down onto the floor.

I had my own nutrition for this race. I was carrying several Maurten energy gels for food and fuel as well as two bottles of the PH1000 Precision Hydration soluble salt mix. Rehydrating with salt is extremely important when racing in this type of humid climate because the body will definitely lose a lot of sodium through sweat. So this urgently needs to be replenished otherwise the risk of cramp is high.

Kilometre markings present 

There were kilometre markings at every kilometre which should be the case for a race of this caliber. The markers were huge and impossible to miss. 

However comparing my watch to the markings, the recordings were generally 100m to 200m out.

I think this issue was probably due to inaccuracies with regards to the GPS readings because we were running through the town area and there were lots of buildings and obstructions which could interfere with GPS signals. 

Timing mats clearly indicated

 Timing mats were positioned at every 5km intervals to mark our time and progress.

For a race of this caliber, timing mats are always important to prevent runners from u-turning early thereby missing out on crucial splits.  

Crowd support 

In terms of the crowd support in Singapore, there were two or three people here and there, mostly friends and family of runners.

The organisers had stipulated specific cheer squad stations in a bid to encourage some supporters to come out, but I guess that most people were still in bed due to the early hour of the run. 

At least some of the local running groups had brought out cheer squads though such as Running Department. So this was good.

Half and full marathon split

The split for the half and full marathons was at around 16km mark where the half would turn back towards the city and then the finish line while the full would venture eastwards to East Coast park for the next 10km of the race before heading in the direction of Stadium.

Seeing the half marathon runners turn towards the finish was the point when I found myself regretting signing up for the full marathon. 

Reaching halfway

I crossed the 21.1km halfway mark in 01:58:59 which was well on target to meet my goal of 4 hours as long as I was able to maintain the pace and did not slow down.

My pace was still feeling strong and I felt good to keep on going, running slightly ahead of the 4 hour pacers. 

Second half of the marathon 

The second segment at East Coast Park was a long out-and-back straight.

This was pancake flat but mundane because I run at East Coast all the time. So the scenery was nothing new to me. 

The main motivation was looking out for friends on the other side of the u-turn and encouraging them to keep going. I saw quite a number of familiar faces.

My legs were beginning to feel a bit heavy and thoughts of slowing down did cross my mind, but I persisted and kept going. I was still feeling well in control and I intended to keep it that way.

Leaving East Coast park 

It was around 30km when we exited East Coast Park. 

My legs were getting heavier and I harboured thoughts of slowing down, but the pacers kept me on pace and I was able to maintain staying just in front of them.

Final stretch

The final stretch brought us to the Gardens by the Bay before climbing up the Sheares “Heartbreak” Bridge followed by the Nicoll Highway. 

Yes there were two bridges along the route and both were being thrown at us when our legs were dying. 

I was very tempted to walk up the bridge as my legs were very heavy but I forced myself to keep running and resisted the urge to give up and walk.

But what really brought a smile to my face on the bridge was seeing my coaches Ben and Jim from Coached there cheering on the Coached runners taking part. 

They recognised me and called out my name. It somehow gave me renewed energy to keep on going and hold onto the pace. I am thankful to them for being there for us. 

I slowed significantly at the Sheares Bridge and this was when the pacers overtook me. When I saw the grey balloons disappear into the distance, I felt dejected. I slow jogged up  bridge and attempted to make up some pace as best as I could, on the downhill segment.

Stadium Drive was never-ending 

After the two bridges, the final stretch was down Stadium Drive en route into the Singapore National Stadium. 

Somehow Stadium Drive felt extremely long and never-ending and I was wondering when the run would be over. I was so near yet so far.

The pacers were still at least a minute or so ahead of me at this point but according to both my watch and the distance markings along the route, I was still on pace for a sub 4 marathon. So I just decided to hold the pace as best as I could and see where it took me. 

The finish line looming 

When I saw the entrance to the stadium, I attempted to pick up the pace as best as I could, trying to look as strong as possible even though I was literally dying inside. 

I didn’t know if I had done it and met my target when I crossed the finish line, but according to my watch, I had. I confirmed that my timing was indeed under 4 hours with the official race app.

Sub 4 target met 

I had run 03 hours 59 minutes 09 seconds.

Sub 4. I’d made it.

It is my first local sub 4 marathon. I had successfully managed to avenge those 10 seconds from last year.

My second half split had been 02:00:10. So I had successfully managed to run a very consistent pace throughout the entire 42.195km of running. My first and second half splits had been just over a minute apart in difference.

This type of very even pacing is something that I can definitely feel proud of and is the same race strategy that the best runners such as Eliud Kipchoge and Singapore’s very own Soh Rui Yong employ in their marathons. 

We might never run as fast as them, but as Coached always says, we should aim to be as consistent as them.

Finisher entitlements 

The finisher entitlements provided to us were decent and had all the necessities and basics that runners need, covered. It was not quite as epic as all the stuff that I had received in Chicago after the marathon, but there were carbs and proteins, good for us to replenish ourselves after the marathon.

We had received a black finisher t-shirt and a huge, solid medal, as well as bananas, 100PLUS and small packages of Oatside chocolate oat milk. 

However I think plastic bags could have been provided, for us to hold and carry everything that we’d received. I struggled to carry everything as I walked down the food and drinks collection line.

Race village and stalls

The race village was inside the stadium and comprised of several booths such as 100PLUS, Oatside and 5 hour energy. At 100PLUS, they were giving out their yummy new recovery drink. This was really delicious, tasting just like Yakult.

Oatside was also very generous in handing out small packages of their delicious oat milk. Chocolate milk is known to be one of the best forms of recovery after a hard workout, so it was great that Oatside was there to fulfil the need for chocolate milk. Other than the chocolate, their original and coffee flavours were also available too, all for free.

Several photo booths were also around for runners to take pictures and mark their respective achievements. The Seiko booth had a significant queue as there was a photographer present here, but other photo standees were out in the open with short to no queues.

After we exited the stadium, it was made clear to runners that we were not allowed to enter the stadium again. I suppose this rule was put into place by the organiser to prevent overcrowding at the race precinct, with many runners coming back at around the same time. So it does make a lot of sense.

However we still had access to the spectator stand areas at Gate 12 where we could watch friends coming in from a good photo and video vantage point. So this was quite good on the part of the organisers. 

Race vlog

Gold Label Elite Marathon

With regards to the the elite races, David Barmasai Tumo emerged victorious in the men’s category of the Gold Label Elite Marathon, with a time of 2:14:15.

It has been a very close race. He finished ahead of Kenya’s Geoffrey Birgen who finished in 2:14:30 while Kenya’s Anderson Seroi was third in 2:15:59. 

Said Tumo, “I was aiming to improve my position from my last SCSM race here in 2018, and I focused on my agenda and got on track with my training gradually.”

And in the women’s category, Bahrain’s Rose Chelimo emerged as the winner with a timing of 2:37:18. Coming in second place was Beatrice Jelagat Cherop in 2:37:35. Meseret Dinke of Ethiopia finished in 2:37:48 to take the third spot and round off the podium. 

Chelimo recently gave birth to her second child in 2021. She said, “This is my first marathon win since 2018. I went on maternity leave in 2021. There were a lot of challenges to come back from maternity leave and I had to train very hard to do so.”

She also added, “Although this was the most difficult race I have ever done due to the heat and the humidity, it is a great feeling to know I can still compete for the championships.” 

Both Tumo and Chelimo take home USD $30,000 for their efforts. 

Singapore National Marathon Championships

Winning the Singapore National Championships for elite local runners were Soh Rui Yong and Rachel See claiming the titles of men’s and women’s marathon champions and SGD $10,000 each, with finishing times of 2:40:34 and 3:05:51 respectively.

Soh finished ahead of Daniel Leow who clocked 2:48:08 while Benjamin Khoo timed in at 2:50:37 in third.

See, who also finished first in the Masters category, was around seven minutes ahead of second placed Jasmine Teo in 3:13:35 while third-placed Jasmine Goh was closely behind in 3:13:46.

The unifying power of sports 

Jeff Edwards, Managing Director of Asia for The IRONMAN Group was pleased with the success of the SCSM this year. He said, “SCSM2023 epitomised the unifying power of sports, and its ability to cross cultural and geographical boundaries to unite individuals through their shared passion for running and their pursuit of personal excellence. We are especially pleased that we were able to offer runners a truly special finish at the National Stadium this year.”

He also continued, “The strong showing of international participants is a testament to the event’s growing stature, not just in Singapore, but also with serious runners everywhere.”