Run, Hui Ting, Run

The o8o8o8 factor had taken toll on Malaysians after the mayhem of the Olympic Torch Relay (twins, Zi Qin and I attended too), and following it, to celebrate the largest Asian country of hosting the Olympics, the National Olympic Council organised Olympic Run, opened for all to participate. McDonalds was the official sponsor.

As early as 7am, we gathered at Merdeka Square. There were already lots of people. And from far, we could hear music blasting and some of the main roads were blocked by the dutiful PDRM.


The Sultan Abdul Samad Building at Merdeka Square.

Many were there. Besides us squash club members, we also saw Pei Foong, Boon Fei, Lavenia, and to my surprise Michelle with her boyfriend Navin. We also saw quite a few ex-classmates and some of my sis's friends.

Oh, yeah, the route for Women's Open category is a whopping 7km. When the gun blasted, we jogged. It was only about 5 minutes when Zi Qin started to complain about stomach cramps. So I left her and continued my slow jog. Sing Yi, Yee Toong and the twins were already sprinting in front. And after about 25 minutes of continous jogging, my legs gave and I walked. So, I lost Michelle and Vicky because they sped past me.

So the rest of the route was: jog jog, pant pant, walk walk, then run again. Then there was a check point for us to have a quick drink. Then I ran among strangers. It was almost about the end when I saw Yen Yuen. So we ran together and talked. Then we saw Yee Toong and Michelle walking in front. I quickly ran towards them, but when they saw me, they continued running. So I was left alone again.

Alas, after about one hour, I reached the finish line. Grateful to get the cert, because certificates are only issued to those who were able to finish the run within 70 minutes.


Yoong Sin running like a orang gila towards the finishing line.

The best part was, there were lots of free stuff. Free Cornettos, Ribenas, Milos, Vitagens. The guy on the Cornetto stand was shouting: "each person one only", which obviously nobody cared, because we all each took two, and in the end were suffering because cannot manage to finish two ice-creams in a go. Michelle took three. I drank 3 cups of ribenas, 1 milo and 1 vitagen. Until now I still regret not having more Milo.


The crowd at the free stash booth.


Michelle and me after running.


Yoong Sin and me. After that Yoong Ling was complaining because she did not get a chance to take photo.

I slammed down on bed after I bathed as soon as I reached home. My legs were tired but I surely had a very happy day participating in a run like this.


Viva 2008 Beijing!!