By Steven Yeo
Road running in Singapore needs something new. It's a new decade and a new world. Having grown from 2,000 runners in Year 2000 to 50,000 in Year 2009, the Singapore Athletic Association (SAA) is inviting sports marketing experts to collaborate and bring Singapore road running to a new height. More new quality events, more integration of events, more new runners.
At stake are the commercial rights of Singapore Marathon, the Singapore Cross Country, the Singapore Road Relay and new events which can be created to raise the quality of the running scene. The estimated value of National running events is about $5m in 2009 and should be expected to double by 2020.
In November 2009, SSC announced its plans not to renew their partnership agreement for the Singapore Marathon. SAA and the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) reached an agreement to prolong the partnership so as to ensure the smooth running of the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2009. Based on the agreement, all joint rights created for the marathon revert back to SAA.
Mr Loh Lin Kok, President SAA said, "We need to reinvent ourselves again. In Year 2000, SSC first approached SAA when under the Committee On Sporting Singapore, it needed a world class events to nurture. This was part of the three-prong, major push by Singapore to become a Sporting Nation. Singapore then had few international events which it owned and had potential. SAA was happy to collaborate with them. They have spent 10 years working with us. We thank them. We hope that in the new configuration, SSC will continue to feature as a strategic partner".
Strong points in the past years has been the growth in breadth and depth - participant numbers and elite performance standards. Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon is being lauded internationally as an Asian star for these reasons and SAA will build on this.
Mr Loh added, "I am deeply appreciative of the support Standard Chartered Bank has given to Singapore road running and look forward to their continued support.”
Mr Steven Yeo, CEO SAA said, "We will also be looking for partners who can also bring running to the masses. Based on what we have been seeing at the marathon, distance running attracts a disproportionately high percentage of the professionals - we need to reach out to all walks of life. If road running events are to grow, we need to reach out to the heartlands. An important criteria for selection of our partner would be their ability to not only" bring money but expand the reach of distance running to different communities."
SAA will be meeting with international sports marketing agencies in January 2010 to discuss possible collaboration terms. The decision is expected to be announced in late January 2010. Criteria for selection will be team credentials and experience, financial returns and quality programs to bring road running to a higher plane.
This has waited a very long time. Our national championships for cross-country and track-and-field have been wasting away over the years with little marketing and value attached to it. SAA seem to be taking a step in the right direction by commercialising “Singapore Cross Country” and “Singapore Road Relay” as this would raise the profile of the competitions and the athletes who compete in them. But again, it remains to be seen if these plans are carried into action. Several years ago, they talked about creating a monthly cross-country league but everybody in the scene knows nothing came out of it. It is time to see actions.