More than 42,000 runners have signed up for the Kuala Lumpur StanChart Marathon (KLSCM) this year,  more than any other edition of the race. Out of these, 12,500 are set to take part in the Full Marathon, the largest ever since KLSCM’s inception.

With a record breaking number of runners participating, KLSCM hopes to use this opportunity to prod the running community and corporates to contribute to society through fundraising for charities and foundations.

Says Rainer Biemans, Director, Dirigo Events, the owner and organiser of KLSCM, “We have recorded our largest KLSCM yet in terms of participation and this bodes well for our Run for a Reason charity initiative. We hope the extra numbers can help drive fundraising for our beneficiaries.”

Run for a Reason will have a morale-boosting support from Poo Vasanthan Subramaniam, the two-time champion in the Malaysian Open category, who will be defending his title again this year.

Poo is planning to donate a portion of his prize money to Run for a Reason if he successfully wins KLSCM again.

Credit: KLSCM

Said Poo, “I believe Run for a Reason is an important part of KLSCM and I appreciate that it allows runners to give back to the community by raising funds for charity. All the four charities do good work but I think I would like to support Kechara if I win again. Life can be hard in the city and many people are struggling to survive, so what Kechara does is inspiring to me.” 

Kechara Soup Kitchen is a charitable Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) giving out free food to the homeless and free food ration to the poor whilst also empowering the unemployed with skill sets.

The other charities linked to Run for a Reason are the women empowerment advocates Standard Chartered FutureMakers, palliative care provider Hospis Malaysia and education foundation Teach for Malaysia.  

Poo wants to do this because he is thankful of his running abilities and the position that he is in. 

Last year, Poo finished the marathon in 2 hours 37 minutes 38 seconds in his back-to-back win. His rivals however, will be back to give him a run for his money. These include both five-time champion Muhaizar Mohamad and Nik Fakaruddin Ismail, last year’s runner-up.

Poo said, “I am thankful for being able to be successful in running and KLSCM has given me some great memories. Since Run for a Reason is a great way for runners to give back to the community, I also want to do my part.”

Poo is looking forward to defending his title at KLSCM and training for the marathon is going well. he said, “I am in the final stages of my daily training under my father, who is my coach. I am following his systematic training plan on how to prepare for a big race like KLSCM. His most important advice is to never underestimate any runner and never be overconfident so I will respect all runners while doing my best.”

What tips does the two-time champion have for the more than 12,000 runners taking on KLSCM this October?

He said, “Always listen to your coach, eat good, nutritious food, train hard and get enough rest. Try to sleep early so you can recover well from your training. Run strong and try to break your PB (personal best) because if you can do that, you are a winner.”

With less than six weeks remaining, the race organiser and all supporting parties are making sure that this year’s edition of KLSCM “will be the best edition yet”, according to Biemans. 

You can donate to Run for a Reason here.