This year due to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic restrictions, we may not be able to gather together in-person to run through the heart of Orchard road for the the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon (SCSM).

But you can still run past the iconic Singapore landmarks with the new and innovative hybrid race format announced by race organiser IRONMAN Asia Group yesterday at a media press conference.

Powered by Rouvy, an indoor racing app with augmented reality courses, this new virtual race experience will connect you to an avatar on a treadmill via a smart tablet. As you run on the treadmill, your avatar will match your pace and run through the iconic streets of Singapore.

Runners will be able to choose either the 10km or the half marathon routes. Both routes will pass through iconic landmarks of Singapore such as Orchard Road, Little India and Chinatown. The 2020 race will not feature a full marathon.

Said Geoff Meyer, Managing Director, IRONMAN Asia, “while virtual reality racing will never replace the 50,000 people racing on the streets of Singapore, we wanted to reinvent ourselves and create something special this year, rather than just having a virtual race.”

Added Keith Tan, Chief Executive Officer, Singapore Tourism Board, “This year, we cannot bring our runners together in person, but IRONMAN Asia have reimagined what a world-class running event looks like in a Covid-safe environment. Now it is possible for anyone to experience running in Singapore without the humidity. The avatar and inbuilt video features emulate an actual race experience and allows runners to compete with each other this way.”

To demonstrate the Rouvy augmented reality technology to the media and guests present, a 1km treadmill mini competition was organised  between Tan and Lim Teck Yin, Chief Executive Officer, Sports Singapore, and this was aired live on the big screen.

This mock competition had been quite fun to watch and on the video screen, both Tan and Lim truly looked like they were running down Orchard road.

Media and guests also had the chance to try out the Rouvy powered treadmills for themselves to get a taste of what it felt like. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

Compared to running on a normal treadmill which I usually find boring, this one was quite exciting during the approximately 300 meters I was running on the Rouvy treadmill.

The avatar moved in real time when I ran and matched my pace throughout, speeding up when I did and slowing down with me, as well. There was no lag time.

As well, the graphics are rather life-like too, for example, there were actually cars speeding down Orchard Road during my run, and there was a start and finish arch too,  decorated in the colours of IRONMAN Asia and the other race sponsors. If I focused on looking at the tablet screen, it really gave me the Orchard road vibes.

However, despite my initial amazement in experiencing this technology for myself, I think that I may lose interest after a while, especially if I am running alone. After all, I would still be running solo on a treadmill, and there is no race atmosphere or sounds present, despite the visual graphics.

But I think that this feature may just be able to work well for runners in an actual ‘race’ setting with several people competing virtually against each other.

Said Lim, “This is an excellent platform to build a sense of community. That is what we tried to create in the absence of the masses coming together. We can all use this platform to create communities ourselves and make our own competitive element with that.”

For those who are not keen on running on the treadmills though, the 10km and half marathon races are also being offered in a virtual running format, where runners can pick their own routes, no matter where in the world they are located.

Runners who wish to attempt both the 10km and the half marathon virtual races can take part in the Double Up Challenge.

Both the augmented reality and the virtual events are free to participate in, with the finisher entitlements available for purchase for runners who wish to commemorate their achievements.

We had a preview of the medals at the media event and they look quite big and solid, with iconic Singapore landmarks such as the Merlion, printed on them.

Singapore-based runners who wish to receive their medals can look forward to picking them up at the Grand Finale Celebration, held from 5 – 6 December at the Flower Field Hall, Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay. As well, photo backdrops will also be in place for runners to take photos for their social media accounts. 

For this finale event, do note that strict public health and safety protocols will be in place in accordance with Covid-19 regulations and due to safe distancing, runners will be required to book their time slots in advance.

Overseas runners who wish to purchase the finisher entitlements will have their stuff mailed to them.

Said Meyer, “I am proud of the team and our partners for rising up to the challenge and presenting runners with a unique and innovative world-class experience. We look forward to having people around the world participate in the race virtually and safely and to end the year with an uplifting event.”

And added Tan, “while many Singaporeans were eager to see the SCSM return in its full glory, we know that for this year, this was not to be. Undaunted, the organisers have put together a celebration of the SCSM through an immersive and engaging experience. This speaks to the spirt of Singapore and of all runners who wish to come together in one voice to celebrate our way of life and in overcoming the limitations of these Covid-19 times.”