After a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon (KLSCM) 2022 returned in full force this November at Dataran Merdeka.

Malaysia’s most anticipated running event

The most anticipated distance running event in Malaysia, KLSCM 2022 took place over two days on 12 & 13 November, with the 5km and 10km races being on the Saturday and the longer 21.1km and 42.195km events taking place on the Sunday.

Running the 21.1km race

I took part in the 21.1km category. I have not raced a real 21.1km running event since 2019, pre-Covid, so I was pretty excited to see what I could do at KLSCM and how I would perform.

The timing of the KLSCM this year was perfect as a lead-up race towards the full marathon in Singapore early next month.

Race morning 

The 21.1km category flagged off at 5:45am. This was two hours after the full marathon, so it meant that the runners participating in Sunday’s two categories would finish roughly around the same time.

I was awakened at about 4am. My accommodation (Swiss Garden) was about a mile away from Dataran Merdeka, which would be good to walk to get the legs moving. 

I had been worried that race day would rain, because it had been raining every day in KL since I arrived. 

Fortunately the skies were clear. There was a bit of wind. It was a good morning for a run.

Unfortunately the high humidity levels were a constant for this part of the world. 

I was still feeling pretty stuffed from a heavy dinner of the Petaling Street claypot chicken rice, so I didn’t eat anything on the morning of the race. I did drink some 100PLUS though, to give me some quick energy.

Reaching Dataran Merdeka

We left at about 4:40am and reached Dataran Merdeka at roughly 5:15am. We were well within time.

The first thing I noticed about the race precinct was the numerous portable toilets – so many of them. But it is a good thing as this would shorten the long queues for the toilets. 

Start pens 

We headed towards the start line soon after. We were in Pen 1. 

At around 5:30am, the emcees were there creating a lot of buzz and hype and music to get our adrenaline pumping. The energy being created was crazy and infectious.

My race goal was sub 1:50 hours as I have always known KLSCM to be a challenging and technical course. But I was secretly hoping to break 1:45 hours – if I could. 

This may sound a tad ambitious, but I didn’t think it was completely impossible, based on how much improvements I have made lately with regards to my running.

I was near the front of the starting pen. Pen 1 was not very crowded so there was plenty of space for dynamic warm-up exercises and jogging on the spot to get my muscles warmed up for the race.

Time for flag off 

The flag-off for the first wave took place a couple of minutes early. It was 5:43am when I began my run. 

Pacing myself in the early stages 

Not wanting to burn out too early, I tried to start at a 5:05/km pace, and see where that took me.

It was a humid morning, quite typical for this part of the world where the humidity levels are always close to 100%.

But thankfully due to the early hour, the sun was not yet out. So it was still cool enough for Malaysian standards. 

Race route 

The race route went past many of the main sights of Kuala Lumpur including Masjid Jamek, the Petronas Twin Towers, KLCC Park and the Bank Negara.

Due to the darkness and the early hours, it was not particularly scenic though.  

I felt good 

I think I felt good so I sped up somewhere around 3km or 4km to a 4:58/km pace and spent the bulk of the race following an unofficial group of pace runners who were aiming for a 1:45 half marathon.

The first part of the race was pretty flat with not much slopes, mostly through KL city centre.  

The second third of the half marathon took us to the outskirts of town towards Jalan Ampang and the Intermark Mall. 

This part comprised of a few up and down slopes, with the most memorable being a somewhat steep, but thankfully short enough one at about 13km or 14km.

Good hydration points 

The hydration along the way was excellent. There were a total of eight hydration stations along the half route, with four of these serving both water and 100PLUS. The beverages were ice-cold. The other four served water only. 

Additionally, the final aid station just after 18km was providing cold sponges for runners to cool themselves down. This is a great idea in such tropical weather as the body can really heat up quickly.  

Distance markings 

Along the way, there were markers positioned at every kilometre of the route to keep runners on target. 

According to my Garmin, some of these were about 100m or so too long, but others were slightly short by about 100m-ish. So I figured that they’d all balance each other out by the end of the race. 

Stomach cramps 

I think I did well in keeping up with the 1:45 runners until the final stretch at about 17km or so when I felt my stomach cramp. 

I think it was due to the heavy dinner plus the non-stop eating over the past days in KL.

But what else could I do? The street food in KL is just too good to resist. 

I completed the last few kilometres in pain, with my stomach suddenly seizing up and then the pain dulling, then seizing up again about a few hundred meters later. This continued for the rest of the run. 

So it took all my strength and willpower to hold onto a low 5 mins-ish per km pace and not be tempted to slow down or walk. I had to grit my teeth and force myself to block out the pain – in order to keep on going.

Fortunately it was an overcast morning and the sun was thankfully still sleeping. I was grateful for that. 

When I reached the junction where the half marathon runners turned in to finish, I couldn’t help thinking to myself, ‘heng’ I’d signed up for the half marathon and not the full distance. 

This junction was somewhere around 18km. I really couldn’t imagine running another 20km more with stomach cramps, which would have happened had I signed up for the full marathon. 

By this point, I simply wanted to finish. As long as I could hold onto my pace and not jog or walk, it was going to be a personal best and I was happy.

Finishing 

The finish line couldn’t come soon enough. It was such a relief to see Dataran Merdeka in the distance. 

The sign that said 500m to go was music to my ears.

A new personal best

Runners and supporters were gathered together cheering us on in the final stretch. It felt good and I would have sped up if I could. At least I was able to hold on and maintain the pace. 

My official finish timing was 1 hour 47 minutes 10 seconds.

Personal Best!

Distance was a bit long

I think that the half marathon course was about a couple hundred meters long. This is because when I finally crossed the finishing line, my watch read 21.42km. 

I guess that the distance markers didn’t quite balance themselves out, after all.

Could I have accelerated in the last few kilometres and gone under 1:45 hours if it had not been for the likely food-induced stomach cramps?

I’ll never know the answer to that.

But this was nonetheless my first time running a half marathon under 1:50, I’ll take it and I’m still very happy with my performance.

There’s always another race for me to break the 1:45 barrier. 

Finisher entitlements  

After the race, I headed to the finishing tent to pick up my finisher medal and goodie bag, which consisted of an over-ripe banana, a pear, a bottle of water and a bottle of 100PLUS isotonic drink. 

I thirstily downed the isotonic, knowing that I needed to replenish the electrolytes and salts that I had lost during the hard run.

A unique medal

The medal is designed quite well, consisting of a movable “2022” which swipes left to reveal a hidden “2020” underneath. 

I felt this idea was a really fitting way of providing closure after what happened in 2020, and a symbol of how we were finally able to run the race that we had all signed up for two years ago.

This idea of providing closure for 2020 was clearly in the minds of the race organisers.

Explained Rainer Biemans, Project Director of KLSCM and Director of Dirigo Events, the organisers of the race, “It is a relief to finally be able to close 2020. For us, it was the 2020 race that we had to finish. Today was lovely to have runners coming back and see the big community again, no more of running in 10 or 20 or 1000, we are back to the big stage again and I am relieved and happy.”

The paddy field

I didn’t check out the race carnival at the Dataran Merdeka paddy field because I didn’t want to get my racing shoes wet and muddy. The sheer sight of the mud was enough to put me off.

But from the looks of it, there seemed to be quite a lot of sponsor booths and it appeared quite happening. 

I caught up with some running friends at the race precinct before heading to the media tent to complete some media duties and interviews.

Another great KLSCM edition

It was another great, well-organised edition of the KLSCM. I always enjoy this fantastic and smoothly-run event thoroughly and I will definitely be back again next year. 

Added Rainer, “The 12th edition of KLSCM was a long time coming and we are delighted that we’ve managed to pull it off without any major hitches.”

Race Day at KLSCM Video

KLSCM Race Pack Pickup

Winners of the KLSCM 2022