Thunderstorms in the early morning on Saturday have affected the MSIG Singapore Action Asia 50, with the 50km trail race shortened to 21km, while the 10km course was also shortened to close to 9km for safety reasons.
More than 1,300 trail runners took on the challenging race, which also included 21km and 10km categories in addition to the 50km.
Despite the undesired conditions, Kenya’s David Mutai and Valentine Jepkemoi Serem claimed victories with 1:56:00 and 2:05:42 to grab the men’s and women’s titles respectively.
Guest-of-honour Baey Yam Keng, Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth was at the event to flagged off the 10km race.
Mutai, who was his first participation in an MSIG race was pleased with his performance. He said:
“The race was nice and the trail was good. The crossroads were so muddy, and the trail was a bit slippery. Despite the weather, I think in general this is a good race. Although it’s sad that the organiser has to stop the race, I know it’s for our own safety and protection.”
Second place Justus Kipruto Biwott who was just a second behind in 1:56:01, said:
“The race was good, but it is also challenging. Along the forest, it was slippery, but in general, it was a good race.”
The third place goes to Benson Karuiki Waruguru for finishing in 1:56:02.
The women’s podium was also only separated by a second. Behind champion Serem was Corcus Jebotip Tarus in second (2:05:43.4) and Viola Jepchirchir Kimeli in third (2:05:43.5).
It was Serem’s first time in Singapore. She said:
“I’m feeling good but not so good at the same time. We were stopped by the rain, which is bad, but the race and trail itself is very nice. The organisation is very good and I like the spirit of the sport.” Serem added that she was looking forward to joining the race again next year.
This year’s race featured a new race course, which started and finished at Hindhede Walk in Bukit Timah and covered Singapore’s most beautiful nature trails.
This edition also debuted the National Award Category, which was created to recognise the top local runners in the 50km category.
Singaporean Zijing Lin won the category, clocking 2:13:23.
Other Race Results
10 km (shortened)
Top 5 Men
- Enock Kipchirchir Kigen – Kenya- 00:34:10
- Suresh Tilija – Nepal – 34:22
- Lekha Raj Thapa Magar – Nepal – 35:41
- Tapendra Bahadur Thapa Magar – Nepal – 35:58
- Mohammed Rahim – UK – 37:49
Top 5 Women
- Vanja Chops – Belgium – 00:41:09
- Rebekah Marsh – UK – 00:44:29.7
- Stella Lee – Singapore – 00:46:24.6
- Brenda Fong – Singapore – Salomon – 00:47:36.6
- Morna Holmes – UK – 00:50:08.3
21 km
Top 5 Men
- John Muiruri Mburu – Kenya – 01:26:02.1
- Kipchirchir Lel – Kenya – 01:26:02.6
- Charles Munyua Njoki – Kenya – 01:26:02.9
- James Munyi Maregu – Kenya – 01:27:25.5
- Stephen Chirchir – Kenya – 01:28:17.7
Top 5 Women
- Rosemary Mumo Katua – Kenya – 01:43:11.1
- Isabella Jemurgor – Kenya – 01:43:11.6
- Margaret Njuguna – Kenya – 01:48:11.2
- Jemimah Wayua Musau – Kenya – 01:49:21.1
- Naomi Wambui Muriuki – Kenya – 01:56:09.3
50 km (shortened)
Top 5 Men
- David Mutai – Kenya – 01:56:00
- Justus Kipruto Biwott – Kenya – 01:56:01
- Benson Karuiki Waruguru – Kenya – 01:56:0
- Willy Kipkemoi Rotich – Kenya – 01:56:03
- Dennis Isika – Kenya – 01:56:05
Top 5 Women
- Valentine Jepkemoi Serem– Kenya – 02:05:42.5
- Dorcus Jebotip Tarus – Kenya – 02:05:43.4
- Viola Jepchirchir Kimeli – Kenya – 02:05:43.5
- Jeri Chua – Singapore – 02:13:16.7
- Jeanette Wang – Singapore – 02:24:22.8
View all 2017 – MSIG Singapore Action Asia 50 race results here.
RunSociety is proud to be a supporting partner for the 2017 MSIG Singapore Action Asia 50.
