SAFRA UPS THE ANTE WITH FIRST QUADTHLON

Over 250 people became Singapore's first quadathletes on 12 Oct when they participated in the Keppel Offshore & Marine Quadthlon - Singapore's first-ever quadthlon.

The event, organised by SAFRA Tampines, brought together four distinct and challenging sports disciplines.

Racers had to complete a total distance of 38.5km, comprising a 500m swim, a 20km cycling route, a 6km run, and - a first for any multi-discipline event in the world - in-line skating for 12km.

The addition of an in-line skating segment replaced the more common element of kayaking, in similar events called quadrathlons.

This was done to allow more participants to take part in the race, as not many of them would own kayaks.

While these distances were a fraction of Olympic distances (1.5km swim, 40km cycle, 10km run), participants nevertheless found themselves challenged by the endurance requirements of the quadthlon.

First-time endurance race participant Judith Sim found the race "enjoyable".

The National University of Singapore student felt that the combination of skating with other more strenuous segments helped to bring better pacing to the race such that even newcomers would find it a memorable and enjoyable experience.

Fifty-three-year-old Jonathan Gould, a triathlon enthusiast who does two to three races annually, felt that including in-line skating brought a new and exciting aspect to the race.

"It was a great experience," he said. "I enjoyed the route and I'm very happy with my performance today.

"The champion of the men's open category, Pascal Aeschlimann from Switzerland, finished the race in a time of 1 hour 40 minutes and 57 seconds. As for the ladies, Canadian Theresa Marie Soh finished in a time of 1 hour 55 minutes and 54 seconds.

The Keppel Offshore & Marine Quadthlon is the first major sporting event organised by the newly re-launched SAFRA Tampines, which was branded as a Sports Hub last year.

For endurance race enthusiasts, SAFRA Yishun will be organising another gruelling endurance race, Avventura, on 11 Jan 09.

More information can be found at www.safra.sg/avventura.