Locals Sharon Tan and Soh Rui Yong Clinch OSIM SDM Titles

The OSIM Sundown Marathon, Asia’s largest night race, took place last Saturday night, with close to 25,000 runners flagging off at the F1 Pit Building.

Click here to view the OSIM Sundown Marathon 2019 photos.

Marathon Race

Clinching the Men’s Marathon title was Hillary Kipkering from Kenya, with a time of 2 Hours 49 Minutes 33 Seconds. Singapore’s Sharon Tan won the women’s category in 3 Hours 23 Minutes 16 Seconds.

Said Sharon, 30, a teacher, “I’m happy to win the race. The weather was very cooling and the course was quite clear. My favourite part of the race was running at East Coast park because it was peaceful and surreal. I don’t get to run there often, so I really appreciated it. I was aiming for a sub 3:30 today so I’m very happy with my timing.”

She continued, “I did not really have a strategy today and I was running at my own pace. But if I saw a group of runners going at a good pace, I would tag along, that happened a few times during the race, then I went on ahead after a while. It’s very encouraging to see familiar faces along the route and your friends will also motivate you, too.”

Sharon also added that her race win showed that if you put in the hard work, then you will get the results you want – a value that she wishes to impart to her students.

She said, “Running is a sport that requires discipline. If you put in the work, you will see results and this is what I want my students to know, as I myself have proven today.”

Sharon’s Tips To Run Fast

To run fast like her, Sharon added that her secret lies in regular speed work sessions. She said, “I think most runners will know that speed work is important. You also need to have an easy long run, and a tempo session.”

She added, “But keep most of the running easy and do not be tempted to do your easy sessions fast or you will get injured. Follow the 80% easy 20% hard rule. I got injured before, so I know. I used to want to run fast all the time, so I kept on doing hard workouts. It’s not advisable. Enjoy your aerobic, slower runs and you will see the rewards.”

Half Marathon Race

Winning the Half Marathon categories were familiar faces; Singapore’s Soh Rui Yong took the Men’s category in 1 Hour 11 Minutes 47 Seconds and Maki Inami from Japan took the Women’s category in 1 Hour 22 Minutes 19 Seconds, with Singaporeans Mok Ying Rong and Rachel See coming in second and third, in a timing of 1:24:32 and 1:31:39 respectively.

Said Rui, “I’m actually pretty happy with today’s race being my first ever OSIM Sundown Marathon. I think that this is the fastest time I’ve ran for a half marathon in Singapore. I’ve ran five minutes faster overseas but that was in much better weather.”

He continued, “To be in a competition with an international athlete today, especially a Kenyan, and to be able to come through that kind of battle, pull through and finish first, is definitely the kind of experience I need leading up to the SEA Games and other competitions.”