KLSCM 2026 delivered fierce competition, with record participation and top runners battling for marathon titles and SEA Games 2027 selection spots.
THE much anticipated Full Marathon and Half Marathon categories of the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon (KLSCM) 2026 saw fierce competition amongst the top runners this morning.
The Full Marathon Men’s Open saw a close finish and a Kenyan sweep with Ezekiel Kemboi pipping defending champion John Nzau Mwangangi to the line to win the gold and the prize purse of US$15,000 (RM61,065).
Kemboi crossed the finish line in 02:21:19, while Mwangangi claimed the silver in a time of 02:21:27. Moses Kibet Kipsang took the bronze with his time of 02:21:32.
“I did not really have a strategy for today and came to the race deciding to give it a try. It was hot and humid but I was lucky today,” Kemboi said.
Kemboi, who last raced in the KLSCM in 2023, trained for KLSCM 2026 in the areas of Eldoret, Kenya which had similar conditions to Malaysia.
In the Women’s Open, the crown went to Alemitu Ajema Lema of Ethiopia, who finished the race with a time of 02:39:29.
The remaining podium positions went to Lucy Nthenya Ndambuki of Kenya who came in second with a time of 02:39:59 while her compatriot Caroline Cheptonui Kilel took third place with a time of 02:40:17.
The Full Marathon Malaysian Men’s category also saw Lai Yi Hng clocking 02:34:16 to come in second after Yeow Ni Jia.
All eyes were then on the Full Marathon Malaysian categories, where the stakes were high for some of the nation’s top long distance runners with KLSCM being the official preliminary selection event for the marathon category for SEA Games 2027.
The final stretch saw Yeow Ni Jia arriving ahead to cross the finish line with a new local personal best of 2:33:52 to win the Malaysian title.
National record holder Tan Huong Leong had to settle for third place with his time of 02:39:17.
“I decided to go with the flow today. My goal was to secure a podium spot as well as make the SEA Games longlist and of course, defend the title.
I was hoping to clock below 2:35 and because of the competitive field, I managed to get my local
personal best,” said Yeow, 26. “I will be taking a little break after this to recover from previous injuries.”
In the Full Marathon Malaysian Women’s category, Esther Joy Chen Hong Li become the newly crowned champion after breaking the tape at 3:05:22 in her very first full marathon race.
Second place went to Elaine Koon who registered a time of 03:12:43 while Lai Wei Ling finished third with 03:14:37.
“I decided to give it a shot after heading about KLSCM being the preliminary selection event for the 2027 SEA Games. My coach adapted my training for a marathon block and our strategy was to go big or go home.
“He gave me a rough pace to follow and my goal was to finish the race. It would have been nice to also clock a Sub-3,” said Chen, 22.
Earlier this morning, the Full Marathon was flagged off by the Deputy Minister of Economy, Datuk Indera Mohd Shahar Abdullah.
KLSCM 2026’s second day saw a total of more than 27,000 runners pounding the pavements of Kuala Lumpur and its highways, passing iconic buildings while pushing forward to meet their personal goals for the race.
The first day of races yesterday saw the IHH 10km and 5km categories also flagging off from and finishing at Dataran Merdeka.
A record number of 43,800 participants from 53 countries signed up for the 18th edition of the KLSCM – with 3,600 being international participants.
