Running for health

FOR McDonald’s 10th annual Olympic Day Run this year, some 15,000 Malaysians will be taking part, indicating a rise in the number of participants compared to 12,000 runners last year.

Among them will be a team of McDonald’s employees consisting of 120 runners who represents a microcosm of Malaysian society. The run, which was earlier scheduled to take place at Padang Merbok last Sunday at 6.30am, has been postponed to another date that will be announced later due to the worsening haze.

McDonald’s employees are taking part either as individuals or with their families. For some, it will be their first run and for others, the Olympic Day Run has been an event which they look forward to each year.

The distances for the Olympic Day Run this year ranges from 3km to 10km, depending on the categories. The new 10km distance was introduced to offer a greater challenge for participants in the men’s open, women’s open and men’s junior veteran categories. These three categories were upgraded from 7km.

To allow Malaysians of all ages and fitness levels to participate, the 2013 Olympic Day Run is divided into 13 categories – men’s open, women’s open and men’s junior veteran (10km); men’s senior veteran and women’s veteran (7km); men’s junior, women’s junior, men’s senior citizen and women’s senior citizen (5km); primary school boys and girls (3km); and finally, group and family categories are 5km and 3km, respectively.

McDonald’s Gombak’s manager, Roslinda binti Mohd Rais (51) and her daughter, Siti Intan Baiduri binti Zulkifli (19, also a McDonald’s employee) will be participating in the run for the fifth year. They have been preparing for the past few months by engaging in various sports activities such as jogging and netball to build stamina for their 7km (women’s veteran) and 10km (women’s open) runs, respectively.

Roslinda said: “I’ve always encouraged my children to have an active lifestyle. Therefore, I would tell them to join me in various marathons every year. I have another daughter who will also be joining us in this Olympic Day Run together.”

Both Roslinda and Siti cited that a good warm up before the run is important and it is essential to never stop during a run. Breathing must also be regular at all times.

Colleagues, Warda Norliza binti Badawi (37) and Sujitra A/P Moorthi (22) from McDonald’s JJ Cheras, are also excited to join the run this year. Warda had joined the run for more than five times while this is Sujitra’s fourth year in the race.

Both were athletes back in their secondary school days and have always been active in sports. Warda has a great strategy in training by the beaches at Port Dickson with Sujitra during their off days.

According to Warda, running on the beach and by the waves can train their calves muscles and stamina better.

“While we both love running, I’m more into sprint and short distance while Sujitra is good in long distance running. We often give tips to each other and find suitable ways to train together,” explained Warda.

“The annual Olympic Day Run is one of the ways for McDonald’s to encourage customers and employees to achieve a balanced, active lifestyle. We’ve been working with the Olympic Council of Malaysia for the past 10 years to remind Malaysians that exercise is fun and everyone should do it,” said Junaidah Mazlan, manager of Corporate Communications of Golden Arches Restaurants Sdn Bhd.

She added: “For many of our customers and especially our employees, maintaining a balanced lifestyle for themselves and their families is a priority. Events like the Olympic Day Run create an opportunity for them to have some fun while enjoying the benefits of regular exercises from the trainings they did in preparation for the run.”

All participants will receive an exclusive Olympic Day Run T-shirt and McDonald’s coupons. Winners will also take home attractive prizes including cash prizes worth RM17, 975, medals, certificates, McDonald’s gift vouchers and hampers.