Muhaizar dedicates fourth SCKLM title to late mother

KUALA LUMPUR: Despite grieving for his mother who passed away on March 6, Muhaizar Mohamad could still muster the focus to defend his title as the fastest Malaysian runner in the Standard Chartered KL Marathon (SCKLM), for the fourth consecutive time.
"I am still grieving over the loss of my mother for she would pray for my safety and success," Muhaizar told Bernama.
According to Muhaizar who declined to name his mother, she passed away one week after he returned from the Tokyo Marathon on Feb 25.
In the 10th SCKLM today, Muhaizar clocked two hours, 33 minutes and 24 seconds to beat his nearest challenger and teammate Nik Fakaruddin Ismail by just 19 seconds.
The third place went to Tan Huong Leong who completed the run in 2'34:29s.
"After her demise, I trained moderately and was surprised I could still do it even though the run is more difficult with more hill climbs," he said.
The Kuala Lumpur SEA Games bronze medalist however has not decided which marathon he will be competing this year.
Meanwhile in the women's category, Loh Choi Fern finally nailed the title after trying for five times since 2011.
"Before this, I could only finish in the top 10 group and this time I really made it. To win, I needed the mental strength, stamina and right strategy," said the 26-year-old runner.
She recorded a time of 3'14:04s to beat Yap Yee Ling (3'24:46s) and Yee Pei Ni (3'27:23s) to the second and third places respectively. — Bernama