I remembered my first marathon. That was Standard Chartered Marathon 2002. During that event, it was crowded but not as it is these days. Apparently, endurance events such as marathons, biathlons and marathons are getting very popular. It has come to a point where organizers seem to need to close application deadlines early. So what's this recent appeal of endurance events? Is it a fad or is it for the long run?
One reason for the recent popularity is due to more people becoming more health conscious. There are so many posters, newspaper articles and magazines constantly bombarding people on the importance of health. Also, there are so many gyms out there advertising aggressively it seems impossible to ignore this craze.
Another reason is the increasing number of such events available to the masses. OSIM Triathlon only started like 4 years or so back. Standard Chartered Marathon started in 2001 I believe. Before that, there were running events and stuff but not so much as that of today. With so many events available for participants, and the pretty aggressive marketing, there are more chance to participate in such events.
So are endurance events a fad? In my humble opinion, I don't think so. I think for every endurance event, there are plenty of first-timers. For instance, for Sundown Marathon, on the bus ride to the starting line, I was in a bus full of young guys. They all seemed like army boys. Very peculiar in the sense that they all have short haircuts, the Sundown Marathon singlet and black shorts. Sort of like a uniform. Haha. Well, it seems to me that many of them are first time participants. Out of so many first timers, there are bound to be repeat runners. So with more repeat runners every year, there will always be an increasing number of participants.
Also, as locals become more affluent, there is a shift of focus on their needs. In this Organizational Behaviour course I took some time back, there is this term called Maslow's hierarchy of needs. The gist of it is once you have satisfied with your basic needs such as housing, food and other stuff, you focus more on your social needs and your need to feel good about yourself. Completing endurance events and training and participating are means of doing that.
All in all, I think endurance events are not a fad. As our society progresses, more people will become interested in such events. So my advice, sign up early for the events!
One reason for the recent popularity is due to more people becoming more health conscious. There are so many posters, newspaper articles and magazines constantly bombarding people on the importance of health. Also, there are so many gyms out there advertising aggressively it seems impossible to ignore this craze.
Another reason is the increasing number of such events available to the masses. OSIM Triathlon only started like 4 years or so back. Standard Chartered Marathon started in 2001 I believe. Before that, there were running events and stuff but not so much as that of today. With so many events available for participants, and the pretty aggressive marketing, there are more chance to participate in such events.
So are endurance events a fad? In my humble opinion, I don't think so. I think for every endurance event, there are plenty of first-timers. For instance, for Sundown Marathon, on the bus ride to the starting line, I was in a bus full of young guys. They all seemed like army boys. Very peculiar in the sense that they all have short haircuts, the Sundown Marathon singlet and black shorts. Sort of like a uniform. Haha. Well, it seems to me that many of them are first time participants. Out of so many first timers, there are bound to be repeat runners. So with more repeat runners every year, there will always be an increasing number of participants.
Also, as locals become more affluent, there is a shift of focus on their needs. In this Organizational Behaviour course I took some time back, there is this term called Maslow's hierarchy of needs. The gist of it is once you have satisfied with your basic needs such as housing, food and other stuff, you focus more on your social needs and your need to feel good about yourself. Completing endurance events and training and participating are means of doing that.
All in all, I think endurance events are not a fad. As our society progresses, more people will become interested in such events. So my advice, sign up early for the events!
No comments:
Post a Comment