Aldrich Lim wins 8km race at POSB Run for Kids charity event

By Les Tan/Red Sports

Sengkang East Drive, Sunday, July 12, 2009 – 15-year-old Aldrich Lim surprised some veteran runners when he hit the tape first in the 8km race at the POSB Run for Kids event.

Aldrich, of Naval Base Secondary, came home in a time of 29min 12sec and led from start to finish.

“The best part of the race was running uphill,” said Aldrich. He would be a good bet for a cross-country medal but Aldrich said “my school has no cross-country team”.

Aldrich also competed in the Singapore Biathlon earlier this year and came in 7th in his age group.

Devathas, who came in third, was surprised at the pace at which Aldrich started the race.

“I was wondering who he was and whether he could keep it up!” said Devathas, who finished in 31min 40sec, just behind Steven Lim who clocked 30min 45sec.

In the women’s category, Cheong Tsui Ying finished first in 33min 46sec.

“I’m not used to the Singapore humidity,” were her first words when she had caught her breath. Tsui Ying had just come off a personal best of 1hr 31min for the 21km category at the Gold Coast Marathon.

Rain and lightning threatened before the start of the race but cleared up to give the 3,500 runners a perfect overcast sky for running.

Michael Palmer, the MP for the Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, also ran the race and came back in about 40 minutes.

“It was quite fun and we had perfect weather,” he said.

Actress Tan Kheng Hua was also on hand to run and lend support to the cause.

“One of the things I like about running is seeing place and I got to see Sengkang! Never been here in my life!” said the veteran stage and television actor who is now into directing these days.

“The highlight was watching the kids dash winner. The look on his face! The grit! We need more of that in Singapore,” said Kheng Hua, who loves spending time outdoors running.

The event also raised S$250,000 for underprivileged children in the Sengkang community. The funds will go to the Singapore Children’s Society and an education welfare fund for primary school children that will be managed by the Pungool Central CCC.

The deputy prime minister of Singapore, Teo Chee Hean, flagged off the races and penned best wishes on a public board for the Singapore athletes for next year’s Youth Olympic Games.

Koh Boon Hwee, the chairman of DBS Group, said “As the bank that has nurtured generations of Singaporeans, POSB is very much a part of the fabric of Singapore. This is an especially meaningful event as we have our staff, customers and the community coming together to help the less privileged children in our midst.”

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