A recent oil spill at East Coast Park earlier this week threatened to derail the Tri Factor Run & RunSwim event. But the event went on in the end, despite the challenges, albeit in a modified format with the swim portion cancelled. 

Due to the situation, TriFactor provided participants with alternatives to ensure the safety and satisfaction of everybody who had signed up. About 50% of athletes opted to defer their registration to a later event on 28 July 2024. The remainder took part in modified run routes, with 21.1km and 15.75km run distances replacing the original RunSwim format.

With cool and cloudy weather conditions, many participants ran personal bests. The fastest 21.1km male runner, Yan Mun Foong, finished with an impressive time of 1 hour, 24 minutes, and 17 seconds. In the female category, Faith Ford emerged as the fastest 21.1km runner, completing the course in 1 hour, 35 minutes, and 42 seconds.

Said Elvin Ting, founder, TriFactor, “We are incredibly proud of our athletes and the community for coming together and making the best of a challenging situation. The spirit and resilience displayed today are truly inspiring.”

It was great to see familiar faces at TriFactor and see the running and triathlon community coming together in the face of such adversity to show their support to the event. 

To encourage sports participation from a young age, there were kids’ categories too, with 100 children taking part in the 1km run. Kelly Le, aged five, completed the route in an impressive 10 minutes.

TriFactor is also supportive towards Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) through their CSR arm, TriFactor Care. They support charitable organisations such as Special Olympics, Running Hour, and The Salvation Army. It is hoped the support of these causes will extend the impact of sports events beyond the actual race.

Well done to TriFactor for organising another successful event despite the initial challenges in the lead-up to race day. 

All photos (except the four with me in it) are credited to TriFactor.