The third edition of the Mandiri Bintan Marathon will be held on 4 & 5 July 2020 at Lagoi Bay Bintan. 

I had been invited to the official event launch which took place last Tuesday at Lagoi Bay with plenty of fanfare and excitement, with fresh coconuts which were served to us soon after we had arrived at the event venue. As the mid-afternoon Bintan weather was scorching, the coconut juice was very welcomed and delicious.

Also attending the launch had been the running communities from Batam and Tanjung Pinang, as well as triathletes from the Singapore Triathlon Community and the husband and wife team of Arthur Tong and Elaine Young of Elevate Performance Coaching, who are the event ambassadors. And media outlets from Singapore and Indonesia had been were present too.

Bintan as a sports tourism destination 

Says Prakash Nair, General Manager (Operations) at Bintan Resorts, “We attracted 1,000 runners for our first edition in 2018 and had slightly over 3,000 last year. This year we are aiming for 4,500. We are hoping to use the marathon to build Bintan upon as a sports tourism destination. Amongst our other sporting events are the Tour de Bintan, Bintan Triathlon and Ironman 70.3 Bintan.”

Picturesque, pollution-free race routes 

Unlike other marathons in Indonesia and Singapore, the Mandiri Bintan Marathon boasts of new, picturesque pollution-free routes.

Said Prakash, “Ours is a smoke-free environment with no cars and the route brings you through lakes and forest areas showing you parts of Bintan that you will never see as a tourist.”

And also added Elvin Ting, Managing Director of Orange Room, the organisers of the event, “This is a unique marathon route because the 42km is a single loop and we have taken the best parts of Bintan Resorts and remodelled it into a route that you can enjoy.” 

Elvin added, “We also have ample hydration and a lovely starting area here at Lagoi Bay. The route is well-regulated and widely spaced and there are minimal car traffic throughout the entire running route.”

Organisers have listened to feedback

Regarding the start time for the 10km race, Prakash also pointed out that after taking feedback into consideration, race organisers had pushed the 10km start forward; it had flagged off at 9am last year so that 10km runners could plan their visit to Bintan as a day trip.

However as the weather had been too hot to run a race at that timing, Prakash explained that this year the 10km will be flagging off immediately after the 21km race would have begun, in order to make the conditions more conducive to runners.

As well, other issues from previous events have also been taken into consideration in a bid to improve the overall quality of the race, but organisers however point out that it is not possible to make the full marathon start time too early, as the roads of Bintan are generally not as well-lit as that of Singapore.

At the press conference, we were taken through the marathon race route in the form of a video and I have to say that it is indeed beautiful and scenic on camera, a good way to attract those runners who may have never run in Bintan before. 

For me, I took part in the half marathon last year, too, and I have to add that you really need to see the route for yourself in order to fully absorb its beauty and splendour.

Race categories 

The race category highlights will include a 1.2km run for kids and a 3km run both taking place on Saturday 4 July, for new runners, in line with Mandiri Bank and the event organiser’s shared vision of encouraging running for all and from a young age.

Once again, Mandiri Bank will be the title sponsor for the second year and registration for the kids event is free. This, according to Prakash, is thanks to the kind gesture of Mandiri Bank. He said, “Mandiri Bank shares the same philosophy as us, in that we want to encourage people to take up running from a young age; that is why there is no registration charge for the kids event, but they will still receive all the race entitlements that everyone else gets.”

Organisers are also planning to make the race all-inclusive by encouraging disabled persons to participate in these events.

The Full Marathon, Half Marathon and 10km events will be taking place on Sunday 5th July.

And as well, runners can expect food bazaars and wholesome entertainment throughout the run, with the race weekend this year coinciding with the Indonesian school holidays.

Participant entitlements unveiled

Event organisers also unveiled the participant entitlements for this year’s event and the designs are based on the island of Bintan and the Malay culture which is part of Riau island cultural traditions.

The running tee depicts the identity of Riau, characterised by the swaying coconut trees and the classic blue is inspired by the sea and its beaches.

The motif on the medal is of the “Lancang Kuning” boat, which is a traditional Malay boat. “Lancang” is derived from the word “Kencang” which means fast and “Kuning” is the yellow colour. These boats were used by the Malay kings as their war vessels which symbolise the greatness, glory, power and heroism of the rulers.

I had thought the designs of both the tee and medal was beautiful and significant to Bintan, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it come July 2020; I am aiming to return to Bintan Island to take part in the half marathon category again.

The Covid-19 situation 

While the organisers are planning to proceed with the event, they are also mindful of the Covid-19 situation and are monitoring it very closely. 

Abdul Wahab, General Manager, Bintan Resorts Cakrawala, highlighted that all parties agree that we should go on with life and not let Covid-19 dampen our spirits, and added that precautions have been in place in Bintan Resorts since the beginning of the virus outbreak and will continue to ensure that safety and good health of all runners, supporters and visitors alike, will be taken care of.

Concluding the media launch 

Following the media launch, guests were treated to an afternoon tea comprising of a myriad of mini local-style buns from the nearby Mama B Bintan bakery, which I thought had been quite interesting and unique. Some of the bread flavours that I’d tried had included kaya, chocolate and cheese.

As well, a small selection of packaged fruit juices were also available. This was good to keep us hydrated, considering that the sun was out in full force and I was melting.

And subsequently, in the spirit of true Bintan friendliness and hospitality to their Singapore media guests, a yummy Chinese-style dinner spread was served at a nearby restaurant at the Lagoi Bay area, before we then called it a day and boarded the 8:15pm ferry back to Singapore.