run4COSI 2009

Jun 18, 2009; 5:45 am

The children orphanage at COSI, Cambodia, was abuzz with activity early this morning. The 136 children were rehearsing for the inaugural run4COSI event, a fund raising run to sponsor graduating children to pursue higher education under PCOSIIP. The team from Pentecost Methodist Church was helping with the deployment of road marshals, tag coordinators and medical teams.


The first group to flag off at 6:30 am was for children aged 12 and under. After a short prayer, the children sprinted off, some with shoes, but most without - just running barefooted or in their flip flops.

It is said that there's nothing purer than to see young children run. For the one kilometer they cover, it was pure joy all the way. TH, the lead runner for this group testified that it was an all-out dash for him, and he could just barely keep ahead of the children.



The second group of older children - running two km - flagged off shortly after the first group returned. A much larger group, one could see the competitive spirit within them. HY, the lead runner for the second group was glad that he kept fit from his IPPT and marathon training, for the kids were really fast.


As the sweeper for the second group, I was pleasantly surprised to see a few shoes discarded on the side of the dirt track. The kids just decided that it was faster to run barefooted. (The house parents picked up the shoes after the race!)

There were only a few small puddles of water from the rain the night before. The rain sufficiently cooled down the temperature, but not so much as to render the dirt track wet and difficult to run. It was a really pleasant morning for a run.

At the finish line, kids had gathered to cheer and welcome their returning friends. It was heart warming.

All the kids had a big smile on their faces. To most, this was their first experience at a running event, and I'd bet not their last.



Narak, a new boy who entered the orphanage just a few months ago, was beaming from ear-to-ear. He had come in third (or fourth), and he's only 9 years old. Who knows, he could be groomed to become a good runner. Narak is now a sponsored child (by MBH and yours truly). Pix of Narak crossing the finish line below

The smiles were out again in the afternoon, when the results of the trial run were announced after the PCOSIIP awards ceremony. The top five boys and girls in the two categories received prizes. The top boy house (dorm) and the top girl house, as well as the overall top house were announced. Instead of medals, the prizes were edible goodies/snacks. And it was clear which was more valued by these kids.

Special thanks to race director SS, staff of COSI and the young adult team from PMC.

I think this is the start of a running tradition.

Run for a cause: Angels run4COSI

We all run for various reasons - fitness, fun, self gratification and achievement, etc. I am convinced that there is one perhaps more important reason - to run for a cause.

To this end, I will be participating in the Angels run4COSI intiative.

The children of COSI have always held a special place in my heart and the hearts of many of my friends. Each COSI kid has a story to tell, and it is usually a sad and tragic story. We have seen them grown, from toddlers to teenagers. Through the years, we have journeyed with them, sharing their joys, achievements and concerns, supporting them with our prayers and showering them with our love.

For some of the older kids, the time of reckoning has come. Each child can only stay with the orphanage until the age of 18 (or grade 12). This is a growing source of anxiety for many.

The following video underscores their predicament.


Pentecost Methodist Church, together with Bedok Methodist Church and MMS, initiated the Post COSI Integration Program to prepare COSI graduates for reentry into their community of origin and society outside of COSI.

The main objective for the PCOSIIP is to empower every COSI graduate to become useful citizen in the Kingdom of God as well as in the Kingdom of Cambodia. A key element in PCOSIIP is to sponsor COSI youths through tertiary education under the PCOSIIP Education Fund. Two youths were admitted into a Phnom Penh university last year. Over the course of the next two years, an estimated 12 youths would be graduating from high school grade 12.

With the burgeoning number of COSI youths scheduled to graduate from COSI over the coming years, it is imperative that coordinated effort be directed toward raising funds for PCOSIIP Education Fund. Over the past years, the COSI Angel’s Program in PMC has raised substantial money to finance the trips undertaken by our youth teams to COSI.

This year, the COSI young adults team in conjunction with YMPACT youths and the PMC running community are launching the Angels run4COSI program. The Angels run4COSI will raise funds via outright donations and runner pledges. Every cent raised will be channeled towards the PCOSIIP Education Fund.

Yes, participants in the Angels run4COSI will be undertaking a run!

The designated event is the Streetwise Run scheduled for July 5, 2009 (Sunday). The non-competitive category open to the public is the 4 km run, with an estimated 3:30 pm flag off. Registration fee is by way of a donation (minimum of $10).

If you would like to join us in securing the future for the COSI kids by either making a donation (cheque made payable to "Pentecost Methodist Church", and noting "Angels run4COSI" at the back of the cheque) and/or participating as an Angel in the Streetwise Run. Each Angel undertakes a pledge to raise a minimum of $200 for the PCOSIIP Education Fund.

To find out more, drop me an email at seong350@gmail.com

Singapore Bay Run: Registered 21 km ... this year's gonna be different!

The Singapore Bay Run 2009 priority registration is open for past participants. Early bird registration starts on April 1. More

MBH signed up for 10k and me 12k :)

run4COSI SCSM update

Congratulations to Long, Hongyee, Teck Hui, Rachel, Stephanie, Faith and PK for completing their races last Sunday at the SCSM!

Regardless of timing, the key thing is that you guys completed what you started out to accomplish, and you did it for the COSI kids! Well done!

run4COSI and Run for a Cause

In his No Need for Speed column for the RW magazine (Nov issue) titled "Faith, Hope and Charities: running for something other than yourself is the greatest gift of our sport", John Bingham (one of my favorite authors) wrote about running for a cause. Some may scoff at such runners and dismiss such gimmicks, but there are increasingly more and more people who run for causes close to their hearts.

Jennifer Lopez is a good recent example - she completed a triathlon to raise funds for a children hospital. Dean Karnazes ran for many cancer-stricken children. The Run for Hope race is to commemorate Terry Fox, who inspired generations of runners in his bid to raise money for the fight against cancer.



run4COSI is also about running for a cause, but there are faces we can identify with. The children whom you played and talked with. You laughed, ate and prayed together. You grew up with these kids, and understood their fears and concerns. These are the beneficiaries you love and care for.

The ending of John Bingham's article resonated deeply:

So many of us have changed our own lives through running that it makes sense we would want to change the lives of others the same way. We can take the drive, ambition, and dedication we used to transform ourselves from couch potatoes to athletes and channel that into making a difference for someone else. When that happens, we'll truly understand the words of the renowned anthropologist Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

More resources for our run4COSI team in training:

THE RUNNER'S WORLD 8-WEEK BEGINNING RUNNER'S TRAINING PROGRAM
by Amby Burfoot

Many good tips are provided such as nutrition before the run, arm position, dealing with hot weather, potential running injuries and good use of cross training.

One great quote: "Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself."
--William Faulkner

run4COSI

Some weeks ago, the idea of running to raise funds for COSI education project was mooted. We aim to implement this project some time next year. Thus I was pleasantly surprised to learn that many members of PMC COSI team have signed up for the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon this Dec, for various distances from 10km to the full 42km. That's really wonderful news.

TH and F spoke to me about how to train for the race. Enthusiasm is good and will carry us through, but there are pitfalls such as over extending oneself and risking injury. I have always maintained that the key to running is to complete the race injury free in order to have a good race experience. So here's a structured and disciplined training program that you may find useful.

Key principles:

1. Regularize your exercise / training program. For starters, set aside time for three sessions per week. There will only be one session for the long run, and the other two sessions can be 20 to 30 minutes each. The long session will be one hour, extending up to two hours for those training for the half marathon, and about one hour for those training for the 10 km run.

2. 10% rule: Gradually increase your mileage or intensity, by no more than 10% per week. The proven approach is gradual adaption to stress. So for instance, if your long run is currently 5 km, increase your long run distance to 5.5 to 6 km next week, and no more. If your pace is 6 min/km, don't push it up to 5 min/km this week. Note: either increase distance or intensity (pace or speed), not both at the same time. For first timers, aim for distance instead of speed.

3. Run your own race. Since the objective is to complete the race, it does not matter how fast you run. Do NOT yield to temptation. Do NOT compare with other runners and with each other. You run your own race, at your own time.

4. Walk breaks. This approach has been advocated by Jeff Galloway and Amy Burfoot (Executive Director, Runner's World Magazine). The run-walk system works this: run for say 5 minutes, and then walk for 1 minute. The ratio varies from 1:1 (1 min run, 1 min walk) for beginners to 9:1 (9 min run, 1 min walk) for seasoned marathoners.

5. Recovery makes us stronger runners. Always build in a recovery week. Recommendation is to have a recovery week after every three weeks of build up. The distance covered in the recovery week is about 50 to 60% of current distance.

Recommended program:

There will be three training sessions per week. Sat is designated as the long run day. But feel free to swap the sessions around to fit into your schedule. The other two sessions are described by time as well as distance.

[Choose time or distance based on your own comfort level. IOW, don't try to run 3 km within 20 minutes. If you can only run/jog 20 minutes and not cover 3 km, don't worry. Stick to the 20 minutes!]

If you have more time, include another session for either a walk/jog or swim or bike or gym. This is just a rough program for the 10 km race:

Week ending / Tue / Thu / Sat
Oct 12 / 20 min (3km) / 20 min (3km) / 5 km
Oct 19 / 20 min (3km) / 20 min (3km) / 6 km
Oct 26 / 30 min (4km) / 30 min (4km) / 7 km
Nov 1 / 20 min (3km) / rest / 5 km
Nov 8 / 30 min (4km) / 30 min (4km) / 7.5 km
Nov 15 / 35 min (4.5km) / 30 min (4km) / 8 km
Nov 23 / 35 min (4.5km) 30 min (4km) / 8.5 km
Nov 30 / 20 min (3km) / 20 min (3km) / 6 km
Dec 7 / 20 min (3km) / rest / 10 km RACE
Dec 14 / 10 min walk / rest / 10-15 min jog

You'd notice that the two weeks before the race are scaled down. This is known as the taper period, where we maintain the same intensity, but cut down on the distances.

The corresponding long run distances for half marathon training are as follows:
Oct 12 - 8 km
Oct 19 - 10 km
Oct 26 -12 km
Nov 1 - 8.5 km
Nov 8 - 14 km
Nov 15 - 16 km
Nov 23 - 18 km
Nov 30 - 10 km
Dec 7 - 21 km RACE

The other two training sessions each week remain unchanged, but can add 10 minutes more if you feel you can cope. Recovery week after the race remains the same. The recovery week essentially reminds us to take it easy after the race, and to ease back into shape through walks and jogs.

See related post on COSI angel project.