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PRESS STATEMENT BY YB DANNY LAW HENG KIANG
CHAIRMAN OF THE PENANG BRIDGE INTERNATIONAL MARATHON
CHAIRMAN OF THE PENANG STATE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT & CULTURE COMMITTEE
PENANG BRIDGE INTERNATIONAL MARATHON
7th July 2009, G Hotel, 12 noon
This year, the Penang Bridge International Marathon will be held on 22nd November 2009 in conjunction with the first weekend of the year-end school holidays as well as the completion of the third lane along the Penang Bridge.
Today, almost 1,000 participants have already registered for this year's run which is just the beginning of the submission of entries. Last year saw a massive turn out of last minute entries where 17,000 participants took part in the Penang Bridge International Marathon. Therefore, this year we are aiming to attract 20,000 participants to take part in the Penang Bridge International Marathon, the biggest marathon in Malaysia.
This year we intend to attract more experienced runners to take part in the run especially since we will be providing the Full, Half and Quarter Marathon category with the timing chip system to allow them to have a record of their running time in the Penang Bridge International Marathon. By using the timing chip system, PBIM can concretely claim international standards comparable to other oversea marathons, and our bid to attract more foreign runners to take part in this run will be successful. The runners are able to take their own running time with the timing chip system be it to make personal best time, to beat their best time yet or even, if possible, to beat the world marathon record for fastest time completed.
Having began in 1984, the Penang Bridge International Marathon is the oldest marathon and one of the only two marathons in Malaysia. Therefore with this upgrade of using the timing chip system, we are hoping to create a big impact on Penang Tourism by attracting more foreigners and tourists to come to Penang to be a part of this run. Besides that, we fully encourage local Penangites as well as those from other states to take part in this run to join in with the fun of running across the iconic landmark, the Penang Bridge.
The Penang Bridge International Marathon Photo Exhibition here today is to promote and to create awareness of the marathon to locals. So far, the photo exhibition have been exhibited at Queensbay Mall, Sunway Carnival Mall, Holiday Inn Resort and Seagate. The exhibition will continue to be exhibited in various factories and schools around Penang. Plans for the exhibition to be brought outstation as a roadshow is still underway. Meanwhile, other plans for PBIM include the 'Penang Bridge International Marathon Forum' which will be held on 16th August 2009 for professional and experienced marathon runners to share their personal experiences to other runners who are keen to know of tips and advices for running a marathon.
The Penang Bridge International Marathon has 4 categories, the Full Marathon with a distance of 42.195km, the Half Marathon with a distance of 21km, the Quarter Marathon with a distance of 10km only for teens aged between 13yrs and 15yrs and the Fun Run which is opened for all ages.
On site registration is now available at several locations. Those keen on taking part may submit their registrations and make payment at the PBIM kiosk in the South Wing of Queensbay Mall which operates from 1pm - 7pm daily except for Mondays, EXCO YB Danny Law Heng Kiang Office Level 53 KOMTAR from 9am - 6pm from Mondays to Fridays and the Batu Lanchang Constituency Service Centre from 10am – 12noon daily except Sundays and an additional period every Wednesday from 8pm – 10pm.
For further information, visit the PBIM official website www.penangmarathon.gov.my for more detailed information. The PBIM Hotline 016-4110000 is now opened for enquiries from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday. |
