Epic Battle For KLSCM 2024 Full Marathon Malaysian Category

The 16th edition of the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon (KLSCM) 2024 promises to be an exciting affair with an exceptionally strong field competing to clinch the blue-ribbon Full Marathon Malaysian Men category from two-time consecutive champion Poo Vasanthan. At least six high-performance runners will be challenging each other for the much sought-after Malaysian Men Full Marathon crown.

Epic Battle For KLSCM 2024 Full Marathon Malaysian Category

The six runners include well-known names like Vasanthan, five-time KLSCM champion Muhaizar Mohamad and last year’s runners-up Nik Fakaruddin, who will be going toe to toe with up-and-coming runners like Muhamad Haziq, Vimal Govendarajoo and Jacob Wong Yize. Haziq achieved a fourth-place finish at KLSCM 2022 and has won a few local races in 2023 and 2024, before recording one of the fastest times (2:31:57) by a Malaysian in the Gold Coast Marathon earlier this year. 

Full Marathon Malaysian Men category

Vimal has been blazing a trail in the Half Marathon recently, winning a number of local titles, and also recording an exceptionally fast time (1:10:18) in the Half Marathon at this year’s Gold Coast Marathon. Vimal will be making his Full Marathon debut at KLSCM 2024 and is definitely one to watch. Another Malaysian who clocked a very fast time (2:31:21) at the Seoul Marathon this year was Jacob who, although in the beginning of his nascent running career, will be the proverbial dark horse who might just crash the party with a podium finish. 

Vasanthan, 26, who credits his father-cum-coach for his success, will have to be at his best to fend off his challengers as he seeks a hat trick of KLSCM titles. “I’m in the last stages of my training, which has been specifically designed by my father to prepare for a big race like KLSCM. I will not be overconfident and underestimate any runner but focus on my strategy and do my level best,” said Vasanthan.

“It’s great to see fresh new faces in contention for the Full Marathon Malaysian category title, which is a positive sign that we’re gradually succeeding in building a larger pool of local talent in the marathon,” said Rainer Biemans, Project Director of KLSCM and Director of Dirigo Events. “These are hard-working young runners who are driven to perform at the highest level and we look forward to witnessing their continued progress,” he added. 

The Full Marathon Men Open category, usually dominated by Kenyans, will also feature its own underdog in Keisuke Yokota from Japan. Keisuke, who hails from Saitama, has a personal best of 2:11:43, recorded at the 2023 Osaka Marathon, putting him in contention for the title. “I wanted the challenge of an overseas marathon this year and I think taking part in the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon would be a great choice for me, especially since I can also help expose this world-class event to more Japanese runners,” said Keisuke. He will need to be at his best to beat Kenyan defending champion Kiprop Tonui, who is a serial podium finisher at KLSCM.

Malaysian Women’s Full Marathon category

The Malaysian Women’s Full Marathon category is also expected to be an exciting affair with defending champion Michelle Chua Khit Yeng and runners-up Noor Amelia returning to resume their rivalry. Noor Amelia was the winner of the category in 2022 and is hoping to take back the title from Michelle this year. Also in the mix this time is Tahira Najmunisaa, who came in second in 2022, edging out Michelle to third place. All three women will be in an intense battle to win the coveted KLSCM crown at the internationally recognised Road Race Label event.

A record 42,000 runners will converge on the iconic Dataran Merdeka over two days on 5 and 6 October, with the 5km, 10km and Kids Dash categories taking place on the first day and the Full Marathon and Half Marathon categories taking place on the second day. In this edition, the country’s premier distance running event will introduce enhanced safety measures by physically deploying 35 medical personnel on the Half and Full Marathon routes. Medic On The Run, a joint initiative between race owner and organiser Dirigo Events, and newly onboarded official medical partner Pantai Hospital KL, aims to provide quicker medical attention to potential race emergencies. 

Some of these medical personnel on route will also be running with AEDs (Automated External Defibrillators), enabling them to provide swift emergency services to stricken runners. The Medic On The Run, while delivering essential and rapid medical services to runners, will also add a dash of vibrancy to the event with their brightly coloured red uniforms, making this Race Weekend extra significant. 

Dirigo Events and Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur sent two of Pantai’s Emergency Services Specialists to Antalya, Turkiye earlier this year to gain their Race Emergency certification at a conference under the auspices of World Athletics. Both doctors from Pantai will be heading the medical team on Race Weekend. “In our efforts to continuously raise the bar on the organisation of distance running events in Malaysia, we want to prioritise the health and safety of all our runners through the Medic On The Run programme, which we hope will elevate our race emergency preparedness in accordance with international standards,” said Rainer Biemans, Project Director of KLSCM and Director of Dirigo Events. 

KLSCM 2024 will also continue their journey towards sustainability, which began last year, by implementing further measures to minimise the event’s carbon footprint and make it more environmentally friendly. Dirigo Events introduced refillable water stations last year and encouraged runners to bring their own refillable water containers to reduce the enormous amounts of paper cups handed out by volunteers. The organisers also cut down on single use plastics for medals and other materials and composted tonnes of organic waste from the bananas, apples and pears that were given to runners at the finish line.

This year, the organiser will additionally be doing away with sponges at designated water stations which were used by runners to cool down previously. This time around, runners will be encouraged to splash water on themselves from tubs at these stations to reduce the waste from sponges that totalled 48,000 pieces in 2023. All KLSCM tote and drawstring bags which are given out to runners at the Race Village and at the KLSCM Race Entry Pack Collection (REPC) respectively, will also be made from 100% recyclable material. Dirigo will continue to compost fruits and other organic waste and minimise the use of single-use plastics. The event’s apparel partner Pressio also represents the vanguard in fully sustainable high-performance wear, guaranteeing complete traceability throughout their supply chain.

KLSCM’s Run For A Reason (RFAR) social initiative is an integral component of the Road Race Label event, where runners from all walks of life come together to help raise funds for the beneficiary charities on the platform. This year’s charities are Futuremakers by Standard Chartered, Hospis Malaysia, Kechara Soup Kitchen and Teach for Malaysia. Dirigo is hoping to breach the RM1 million mark in funds raised for the very first time this year and received a massive shot in the arm when the CEOs of title sponsor Standard Chartered Malaysia and Standard Chartered Saadiq, Mak Joon Nien and Bilal Parvaiz respectively, decided to have a friendly competition to see who could raise more funds for Futuremakers by Standard Chartered, the Bank’s global youth economic empowerment initiative that is aimed at tackling inequality by promoting greater economic inclusion. Together, they have raised an incredible RM163,460 so far, bringing the total funds raised for RFAR this year to around RM850,000.

Mak said, “As title sponsor for the 16th year of the KLSCM, Standard Chartered has always been a staunch supporter of RFAR and appreciates the effort that the running community makes to effect positive social change. What is most memorable, for me, is how the marathon sparks new connections: The forming of friendships on and off the track, runners supporting each other as they soldier on, and the crowd cheering for every runner to cross the finish line – an extraordinary demonstration of unity, inclusivity and community.

“This year, Bilal and I are taking on the helm to do what we can to contribute. We’ve made good progress towards reaching our RM1 million target, so I implore all runners to join us to reach that goal so that we can help as many Malaysians as possible.”

KLSCM has evolved to become the biggest running event in Malaysia that attracts thousands of local and international runners whilst firmly establishing Malaysia in the global running calendar. This year saw a 72% increase in the number of running tourists coming to Kuala Lumpur, totalling over 2,500, to take part in the event, bringing in significant tourism revenue to the country. The 16th edition of the event will once again see sponsorship from Title Sponsor Standard Chartered Malaysia, along with Gold Sponsor Boost Juice Malaysia, Pressio, 100 Plus, Brooks, Seiko, TudungPeople, Pantai Hospital KL and Counterpain. This event is supported by venue host DBKL, along with MAF and FTKLAA, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism.

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