VINCENT KIPRONO from Kenya clinched the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon (KLSCM) 2024 when he finished in a time of 02:18:16. Kiprono, in his first ever marathon, ran a blistering race to finish ahead of the leading pack and collected the US$15,000 (RM63,288) prize purse.

A record 42,000 runners descended on Dataran Merdeka over the weekend to participate in the 16th edition of the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon (KLSCM).

Minister of Youth and Sports, Hannah Yeoh, flagged off the Full Marathon of the premier distance running event in Malaysia as it maintained its Road Race Label status by World Athletics, making it the only distance running event in Malaysia accorded that status.

The event saw the Kids Dash, 5km and Boost Juice 10km categories take place on Saturday and the Half and Full Marathon categories were held today.

Kiprono was thrilled to taste success in what was his very first trip out of Kenya. “This is my first marathon so I didn’t expect to win but I was determined to do my best,” he said.

“I was a little concerned about the climate but today was good, and it did not affect me too much,” he added.

In a show of dominance, the top three spots in the Full Marathon Men Open were claimed by Kenyans with John Nzau Mwangangi coming in second with a time of 02:18:22 while defending campion Kiprop Tonui finished third in a time of 02:18:25.

In the Full Marathon Women’s Open, defending champion Beatrice Jelagat Cherop from Kenya retained her title when she finished in 02:33:45, while her compatriot Sheila Jepkosgei Chesang took second place in a time of 02:37:16 and Truphena Chepchirchir, also from Kenya had to settle for third place with a time of 02:39:46.

“Although my time was not as fast as last year, I am happy with it and delighted with the win,” she said. “Maybe next year I can beat my own time,” she added.

The Full Marathon Malaysian Men’s category was a tightly contested affair as a number of runners were vying for the honour of being a KLSCM champion.

Two-time and defending champion Poo Vasanthan however, did not make the start due to an injury and Muhaizar Mohamad, five-time consecutive KLSCM champion took full advantage to defeat his up-and-coming challengers in a time of 02:41:17.

The 39-year-old army commando however had to dig deep and rely on all his experience to fend off the close fight from Muhamad Haziq who finished in second place just seconds behind when he clocked 02:41:38, and Yeow Ni Jia who finished third just a second after in 02:41:39.

“I retired from my army service this year and wanted to give myself a retirement present by winning KLSCM again, so that was my focus this year,” said Muhaizar.

“I managed to spend a bit more time on training and that ultimately paid off with this win,” he added.

The Full Marathon Malaysian Women’s category saw Noor Amelia recapture the title she won in 2022 with a time of 03:09:44, and push defending champion Michelle Chua Khit Yeng into second place with a time of 03:16:37. Rounding out the podium places was Yap Yee Ling who finished third in 03:17:47.

“Although I was targeting a win this year, I didn’t expect my finishing time to be much faster than the previous two years, so I’m really happy,” she said.

Rainer Biemans, Project Director of KLSCM and Director of Dirigo Events, said “The 16th edition of KLSCM has been our largest yet, with over 42,000 participants, 2,500 of whom travelled to Kuala Lumpur specifically to take part in the event, proving once again that this is a much sought-after race that runners look forward to every year”.

“The local running community is of course our biggest supporter and we are truly grateful that they have embraced KLSCM as an event that they shouldn’t miss,” he continued.

“We are particularly thrilled that the Minister of Youth and Sports Hannah Yeoh, honoured us by flagging-off the Full Marathon in a year where we are cementing our status as a sustainable race,” added Biemans.

Hannah flagged off the Full Marathon category accompanied by Mak Joon Nien, title sponsor Standard Chartered Malaysia’s CEO and Datuk Yvonne Chia, Chairman of Standard Chartered Malaysia.

“The KLSCM is a high-impact event that attracts participants from all over the world which will benefit our sports industry. As such, the Ministry of Youth and Sports has approved RM500,000 from its Sports Matching Grant to support the marathon,” said Hannah.

Title sponsor Standard Chartered Malaysia continues to be a strong anchor for the event, having been there from KLSCM’s inception in 2009.

“Every year I look forward to KLSCM as a celebration of the passion and perseverance of the human spirit as runners break their own limits, and also of camaraderie and excitement, where friends and families cheer on their loved ones – and even strangers – to cross the finish line.

“This year, as a runner myself, I was awed by the sheer energy over the marathon weekend, as it was packed with great feats and inspiring stories from our runners at Dataran Merdeka.

“It made me realise once again how incredible KLSCM is in uniting and empowering individuals from all walks of life to make a meaningful impact, and I would like to extend heartfelt congratulations to all the winners and our deepest gratitude to all participants for their steadfast support,” Mak said.

In line with Standard Chartered’ s efforts in promoting diversity and inclusion, the Bank hosted two groups of community runners in the 5km fun run category.

Aligned to the Bank’s support of the Purple Tuesday movement, the first group consisted of differently-abled participants, including bank staff, as well as students and teachers from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Pendidikan Khas, Setapak. The second group were from the Bank’s Goal programme – which aims to empower and equip adolescent girls with the confidence to become future integral leaders – consisting of coaches, students and teachers from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Bandar Baru Sungai Long.

The sense of community is an integral part of KLSCM, exemplified by its Run For A Reason (RFAR) charity social initiative where runners sign up to raise funds for one of the beneficiary charities on the platform.

This year, the selected charities were Futuremakers by Standard Chartered, Hospis Malaysia, Kechara Soup Kitchen and Teach for Malaysia.

“Run For A Reason is a programme that means a lot to us and this year, we are trying really hard to breach the RM1 million mark in funds raised, which will be able to help a lot of Malaysians. There’s still time to donate as we will only close our fundraising on 14 October, so please donate generously,” said Biemans.

More than 2,500 running tourists from 45 countries took part in the event, representing 70 nationalities when counting local foreign residents. It was a bustling weekend in the city, with KLSCM 2024 attracting over 13,300 local runners from outside Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

The Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon has grown year-on-year to become the most anticipated distance running event in Malaysia.

The premier running event once again saw Standard Chartered Malaysia returning as title sponsor, along with a host of returning and new sponsors, including Boost Juice, Seiko, Pressio, 100 Plus, TudungPeople, Brooks, Pantai Hospital KL and Counterpain. The event is owned and organised by Dirigo Events with Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur as venue host.

KLSCM is sanctioned and supported by the Malaysia Athletics Federation (MAF), Federal Territory Kuala Lumpur Athletic Federation (FTKLAA), World Athletics and the Association of International Marathons, Distance Races (AIMS).