Soh Rui Yong completes ‘Double-Up’ challenge at Standard Chartered S’pore Marathon
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Singaporean long-distance runner Soh Rui Yong winning the national marathon title at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon on Dec 7.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Joel Chang
Follow topic:
- Soh Rui Yong won both the national marathon and half-marathon titles at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon. He remains optimistic despite uncertainty for the SEA Games due to an "abnormal" ECG result.
- Abel Sikowo and Shuko Genemo won the elite men's and women's marathon, respectively. Sikowo overcame an Achilles issue to retain his title, while Genemo redeemed a past error from 2016.
- The SCSM faced criticism for congestion during the half-marathon but improved on the marathon day. Runners reported a smoother post-race experience.
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SINGAPORE – “I’m never doing that again.”
That was the first thing that two-time SEA Games marathon winner Soh Rui Yong said after clinching a unique double at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon (SCSM) on Dec 7 by claiming the national championship title in the men’s marathon with a time of 2hr 46min 23sec.
The Singaporean edged out fellow SEA Games-bound compatriot Aaron Tan by four seconds to finish 16th overall at the finishing line at the Padang and seal his sixth consecutive national marathon crown, just a day after winning the half-marathon national title in 1:14:58. Darren Chong was third in 2:46:45.
They finished over 30 minutes behind elite men’s marathon winner Abel Sikowo of Uganda who clocked 2:15:40. Kenyans Mathew Samperu (2:15:46) and Wisley Kimeli (2:15:53) took the remaining places on the podium.
While the outcome may be impressive, Soh’s quests were far from smooth sailing as the 34-year-old recalled how running the two gruelling races in 24 hours took a toll on his body.
Not only did he struggle with sleep as the two races were held in the early morning, affecting his sleeping pattern, but it was also difficult to maintain his energy level for the punishing races that totalled over 63.3km.
“It’s very normal if you (need to) wake up at 2am, that you’re not going to sleep properly,” he told The Straits Times.
“I (also) had to drip feed nutrients into my body, trying to eat as healthy and nutritious as possible throughout the day.”
The successes came as Soh embarked on his triple challenge to run 73.3km over 10 days, as he is also entered for the 10,000m at the Dec 9-20 SEA Games.
Singaporean long-distance runner Soh Rui Yong (left) embracing compatriot Aaron Tan, who finished four seconds behind him at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2025 on Dec 7, 2025.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Despite the recent string of positive results, including a national record in the 10,000m at the Nittaidai Challenge Games in Tokyo on Nov 29, his bid for a medal at the Thailand Games hangs in the balance. This is because he might not be cleared to compete after his electrocardiogram (ECG) – a test to track one’s heart activity – showed “abnormal” results during a routine medical screening on Dec 4.
However, Soh is optimistic he will be cleared to run in Bangkok.
“Let’s just wait for the official announcement. I mean, obviously I don’t have a heart problem because I wouldn’t have been running like that (if I did).”
For now, he will focus on recovery before thinking about Thailand.
For Sikowo, the race too was a slog, as he ran despite battling an Achilles problem for the last month.
Abel Sikowo celebrating after winning the men’s elite title at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon in 2hr 15min 40sec on Dec 7, 2025.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Having encountered “minimal pain” during a light jog a day earlier, he decided to take to the road.
“I told myself, even if I have an injury, I need to win. I wanted to defend my title, no matter what pain I am having,” said the 26-year-old after claiming his second SCSM title.
He was promoted from second place in the 2024 edition after Kenya’s Geoffrey Yegon was disqualified for failing a doping test.
In the elite women’s race, Ethiopian Shuko Genemo took the crown with a time of 2:41:24. Hot on her heels were two Kenyans – Rodah Tanui and Faith Chepkoech – who recorded times of 2:41:33 and 2:41:39 respectively.
For the 30-year-old, it was a story of redemption after she made a wrong turn at the 2016 edition while leading the pack at the 40km mark that eventually cost her the win.
Shuko Gemono made amends for an error in the 2016 edition of the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, by crossing the line in first place in 2hr 41min 24sec on Dec 7, 2025.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
In the women’s national championship, Rachel See clocked 2:58:15 to finish 10th overall and win her third straight women’s national title.
The races on Dec 7, which also featured the 10km and Ekiden, went on smoothly after the organisers widened exit routes to improve the flow of participants, following complaints of bottlenecks at the finishing line a day earlier.
Trevor Chia, a 19-year-old student at Ngee Ann Polytechnic said: “It was pretty fast. I didn’t have to wait at all, which was great.
“It was super smooth. The medics were also very attentive to people who were tired and not feeling well.”
Participants reported less congestion at the finishing point on Day 2 of the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
“It was really manageable. I finished just after four hours and I wasn’t really with that many people,” added Haziq Rafi, a 28-year-old business owner.
“There were plenty of ushers around to hand out refreshments (at the finishing area), so that definitely helped,” noted Felinda Yeo, 26, an associate at Standard Chartered Bank.
