Singapore athletes to receive support from PUMA in their effort to break 2:30 marathon mark in a certified road race, as Soh Rui Yong issues challenge
Singapore, 5 February 2025 - PUMA Singapore this evening announced that it was ready to equip athletes willing to take on Soh Rui Yong's sub 2:30 (male) and sub 2:50 (female) marathon challenge.
Singapore's multi-national record holder, top marathoner and 2-times SEA Games marathon gold medallist had earlier this week said that he would relinquish his SEA Games spot this year should any Singaporean successfully achieve a sub 2 hour 30 minute marathon, in their efforts to qualify for this year's Southeast Asian Games. The gauntlet was thrown down in an effort to raise the bar for Singapore's distance runners.
In an Instagram and Facebook post, Soh shared: "No Singaporean runner has run a sub-2:30 marathon in the past 7 years other than myself. To help change this I’m issuing a challenge to all Singapore marathon runners."
"If any 2 of you run a marathon below 2:30 in the SEA Games qualifying window (22 Oct 2024 - 5 Sept 2025), I will withdraw myself from consideration for the team (top 2 get picked to go). You do not have to run a time quicker than my qualifying mark."
He further added: "I believe this is entirely possible. In fact it almost happened last year - Singaporean Caleb Hia ran 2:30:15 at the 2024 London Marathon. He finished 23rd at the 2024 Singapore Marathon National Championships. Weather and other external factors aside, I believe this shows many other Singaporean runners have what it takes to run sub-2:30. They’re just not training for it or applying themselves in the right races to do so." Soh had qualified for the 2025 SEA Games mark with his 16th career marathon in Houston, finishing with a time of 2:27:49 to qualify for the 2025 SEA Games Marathon by 8 minutes.
Soh Rui Yong's clinched the Singapore SEA Games marathon gold with a time of 2:34:56 and repeated the feat in 2017 in Malaysia with a time of 2:44:31. He first achieved a sub 2:30 marathon in 2014 at the California International Marathon, and his marathon timings over the years include: 2024 Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon: 2 hours, 46 minutes, and 5 seconds
2023 Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon: 2 hours, 40 minutes, and 35 seconds
2021 Valencia Marathon: 2 hours, 22 minutes, and 59 seconds, a national record
2019 Seoul Marathon: 2 hours, 23 minutes, and 42 seconds, a national record
2016 Chicago Marathon: 2 hours, 24 minutes, and 55 seconds, a Singapore record on a World Athletics certified course
2015 SEA Games Marathon: 2 hours, 34 minutes, and 56 seconds, a gold medal
2014 California International Marathon: 2 hours, 26 minutes, and 1 second
PUMA Responds, Backed by a History Steeped in Performance Running
In response to Rui Yong throwing down the gauntlet for Singapore's runners to achieve a sub 2:30 marathon, PUMA Singapore has shared on Instagram that they will be equipping athletes looking to take on the challenge with a complimentary pair of Deviate Nitro Elite 3 racing shoes on a first come first served basis. Athletes who successfully achieve a sub 2:30 (male) or sub 2.50 (female) marathon in a certified road race will also be given $5,000 worth of PUMA store credits.
The global sportswear brand last month announced the signing of three top Singapore endurance athletes in Vanessa Lee, Shaun Goh and Ben Khoo as part of a big step into redefining athlete sponsorships in Southeast Asia. The brand is expected to sign up to six more top tier athletes in the region in the coming months. Read our coverage of PUMA's latest athlete signings here. #PUMASG #ForeverFaster #SeeTheRunLikeWeDo
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