STANDARD CHARTERED KL MARATHON 2009!

Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 Set To Take Off In June With The Aim Of Being Sustainable

RM 350,000 biggest ever cash prize for a marathon in Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur, 20 January 2009 – The inaugural Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 is set to place Malaysia on the global map of marathons by being a sustainable event. Following in the footsteps of eight successful Standard Chartered Marathons spanning four continents, the Race offers the biggest prize money ever for a marathon in Malaysia (RM 350,000) with a guaranteed prize pool for Malaysian runners.

Octagon, a division of CMGRP (M) Sdn. Bhd and Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad officially launched Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009, today. The launch was officiated by the Minister of Youth and Sports, YB Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob. Endorsed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 is also sanctioned by the Malaysia Amateur Athletic Union (MAAU), International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), and the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS).

YB Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri said in his speech,

“Our vision at the Ministry of Youth and Sports is to develop an active, healthy and energetic community. Specifically, we aspire to realise this by making running an accessible sport for all to enjoy.

A world-class, international race such as the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 lends support to this goal by fostering the spirit of excellence not just among professional athletes but among all Malaysians, from the youngest to the oldest of them.”

Octagon who are specialist in sporting events worldwide, aims to attract 12,500 participants for what is expected to be the marathon of the year. Ivan Brixi, Managing Director for Octagon in Asia, elaborated,

"We aspire for this race to become a race for everyone - professional athletes, amateurs, families with children, corporate and NGO bodies and anyone who wants to be a part of something fun and inspirational.

We have every intention to make this Marathon a sustainable one - both by 'greening' it and through the charity element. This means we will do our best to use recyclable materials where possible for the runners' giveaways and encourage KL to become a car-free zone for the day. Indeed we will do everything in our power to reduce the carbon footprint of this event.

The Race will start from Merdeka Square on 28 June 2009. The route for the marathon will showcase some of the capital's most famous landmarks, making it an ideal attraction for tourists and out-of-towners."
Julian Wynter, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad said,

"We are very excited to add KL to the Standard Chartered series of marathons. In all eight countries where we sponsor Marathons, each has created a real buzz amongst the marathon-running community globally and we know that Standard Chartered KL Marathon will be no exception."

"Standard Chartered Marathons characterise the values and attitudes we believe in and live bt every day - having a can-do attitude, the courage to try and the stamina and determination to go the extra mile, no matter what. They also embody our Right Partner promise to our governments, our communities, and our people - to help our communities grow and prosper."

Octagon's goal is to establish the Standard Chartered KL Marathon as the best in the region and to ultimately achieve the Silver and Gold recognition from IAAF within the next 5 years.

Octagon proudly welcomes Standard Chartered Malaysia as the Title Sponsor and MSIG Insurance (Malaysia) Bhd as a Gold Sponsor in the Insurance category. More sponsors will be announced in the coming months.

For media enquiries, please contact:

Standard Chartered Malaysia
Karen R Yap, Senior Manager, Corporate Affairs +6 03 2781 7257
Karen-R.Yap@standardchartered.com
+6012 292 6780

For Octagon: Weber Shandwick Malaysia 03 - 7843 3100 or;

Alina Morais
amorais@webershandwick.com
(017 323 3078 / 03 7843 3125)

Suninthini Ramalo
sramalo@webershandwick.com
(012 635 6351 / 03 7843 3131)

HAPPY MOOOOOO YEAR!!!!

Wishing everyone a Joyful MoooOOOOO year! May you have his strength to run in many more races to come.

The month of January 2009 is definitely full of excitement, controversy, sadness and rays of hope for some. Its only the 1st month and be prepared for more challenges ahead. I took 3 days off from the 'screen' since eve of Chinese New Year to give my twin identical lakes a break. I would also like to take this opportunity to say Thank You to friends and runners who jammed up my mobile with best wishes for the year.

There are just too many things which I will want to pen down. I'll be away to Ipoh shortly and back on Friday night. So, do drop by to check out the following during the weekend.

1) GE30K - A Race & A Tribute to a Friend

2) Latest Update on Larian Adun Chempaka 2009

3) Of FTAAA & MAAU : Of Sportsmanship, Ethics & Rights

4) Gift of Dignity Relay 2009

Happy Holiday!

ADIDAS SUPERNOVA GLIDE - W

After waiting for more than a year, finally I got the opportunity to participate in the Adidas Running Shoe Seeing Program Q1 2009. I went to their office with Wong Kei Ming. Met by Mr Krishnan who took out several models of different sizes for us to try on.

I was actually looking for a pair of running shoe with good cushioning yet light enough to take me through a distance of not less than 20km without giving too much impact on my knee and ankle. Mr. Krishnan took us on a short 'tour' about choosing the right running shoes. I was not a 'technical' person but the various gadget and material sampling shown gave me a better understanding about running shoes and why it cost so much.

After trying a few models and with the help of Mr. Krishnan, I settled for the Adidas Supernova Glide which is an update version of Supernova Cushion. And Yellow is the color for 2009!

You run like a girl: fast and hard. That's why the adidas Supernova Glide running shoe features a GeoFit™ construction specifically designed to meet the demands of a woman's foot as it tears across town at record speeds.

ForMotion™ actively supports your muscles for improved comfort and efficiency

NoSeam engineered-mesh upper ensures a comfortable, irritation-free fit; Women's-specific upper with more space and no overlays in the bunion area to ensure maximum comfort

adiPRENE®+ in the forefoot maintains propulsion and efficiency;

GeoFit™ construction for anatomical fit and comfort

TORSION® SYSTEM for midfoot integrity

Dual-layer, anti-microbial, adiLite-respoEVA sockliner for step-in comfort

adiWEAR® outsole offers the ultimate in high-wear durability

I will be wearing this in the GE30K this Sunday and will write about it in my next posting. So, do come back to check out how the Supernova Glide 'perform' at the race!

RUN FOR PEACE

Organiser
Soka Gakkai Malaysia (SGM), Selangor Branch

Date
22 March 2009

Venue
Padang Serba Guna, Taman Klang Jaya

Distance
8 KM

Eligibility
13 years and above

Reg Fee
RM 15.00 non-refundable

Closing Date
20 February 2009

Reporting time
6 am

T-shirt collection
28 Feb, 1 March and 8 March (11am - 5pm)

Enquiry
Tel (03)33 24 3120 / (03)33 24 3121 / (03)33 24 3122

The SPORTSMANSHIP Spirit

This is my first write up (tho' not the first posting) for the first week of 2009. Yes, 2009 is definitely a year of Challenge and a new Beginning for many things. For the past 2 years, besides taking part in running events, I also got the chance to taste being an organiser and standing on the other side as volunteer as well. Perhaps now I can emphatise with the woes faced by organisers as well as runners. However it is almost impossible to satisfy the needs of each and everyone. What lacking these days are the true spirit of SPORTSMANSHIP. And the saddest part is even those whom we look up upon as good example for the young to emulate are the one who flaunt their uncalled conduct unashamedly.

Is winning and consistently trying at all cost to be a champion that important? Isn't sport supposed to be the catalyst in forging friendship and respect irrespective of age, colour, belief, nationality and social status? Isn't sport supposed to teach us to be team players?

Let us look at the definition as described in the Wikipedia.

SPORTSMANSHIP is conformance to the rules, spirit and etiquette of sport. More grandly, it may be considered the ethos of sport. It is interesting that the motivation for sport is often an elusive element. Sportsmanship expresses an aspiration or ethos that the activity will be enjoyed for its own sake, with proper consideration for fairness, ethics, respects and a sense of fellowship with one's competitors. Being a 'good sport' involves being a 'good winner' as well as being a 'good loser'.

Often the pressures of competition, individual achievement, or introduction of technlogy can seem to work against enjoyment by participants. As a result, sportsmanship may contracted with gamesmanship.

Sportsmanship typically is regarded as component of morality in sport, composed of three related and perhaps overlapping concepts: fair play, character and sportsmanship.

Fair play refers to all participants having an equitable chance to pursue victory and acting towards others in an honest, straightforward and a firm and dignified manner even when others do not play fair. It includes respect for others including team members, opponents and officials.

Character refers to dispositions, value and habits that determine the way that person normally responds to desires, fears, challenges, opportunities, fairness and successes and is typically seen in polite behaviours toward others such as helping an opponent up or skaking hands after a match. An individual is believed to have a 'good character' when those dispositions and habits reflect core ethical values.

Sportsmanship can be conceptualized as an endurance and relatively stable characteristics or disposition such that individual differs in the way they are generally expected to behave in sports situations. In general, sportsmanship refers to virtues such as fairness, self-control, courage and persistance and has been associated with interpersonal concepts of treating others and being treated fairly, maintaining self-control in dealing with others, and respect for both authority and opponents. Five facets of sportsmanship have been identified:

Full commitment to participation (eg. showing up, work hard during all practices and games, acknowledging one's mistakes and trying to improve);

Respect & concern for rules & officials;

Respect & concern for social conventions (eg. shaking hands, recognising the good performance of an opponent)

Respect and concern for the opponent (eg. lending one's equipment to the opponent, agreeing to play even if the opponent is late, not taking advantage of injured opponents) and

Avoiding poor attitudes towards participation (eg. not adopting a win-at-all-cost approach, not showing temper after a mistakes, and not competing solely for individual prizes).

Hopefully 2009 will bring about more changes in people's attitude towards life and be more responsible in their conducts.

ADIDAS RUNNING SHOES SEEDING PROGRAM Q1 2009

Good news for runners who blog or having their own webpage

Adidas had once again brought in more highly innovative running shoes to be given away FREE to runners to wear-test them & to post in their blog a frank & unprejudiced opinion about the shoes after 30 days of usage.

One of the shoe taht is included in this program is adiZero Adois that Haile Gebrselassie used at the 2008 Berlin Marathon setting a world record in the Marathon at 2hr 03mins 58secs.

The sizes are limited and I have then in UK 5.5, 6.5, 7.5, 8.5 & 10.5. Those wishing to possess these shoes will have to comply with the following terms & condition :

1) Come to the adidas office to fit the shoes

2) Undertake to post a comment in their blog

a. about the Technical features of the performance of the shoes after 30 days of usage

b. about the performance of the shoes after 30 days of the usage

3) Must be a blogger or has his/her own website

This offer expires on 15th January 2009 & the shoes will be given out on a first-come-first-serve basis. The program this year is only open to those who had NOT participated or missed out in this program previously.

If you are interested pls call to make appointment as appended below

Office address:

adidas Malaysia Sdn Bhd

Block B, Level 4, Plaza Damansara

45, Media Setia 1

Bukit Damansara

Kuala Lumpur

Tel office : 03 - 20804843

Mobile No : 012 - 3503668

E-Mail : krishnan.karuppan@adidas.com

Best Regards

Krishnan Karuppan

Head of Running

adidas Malaysia