Superheroes on the run

Superheroes on the run

You are making good time in your first marathon when... Batman, the Dark Knight, overtakes you on the way to the finish line.

Or maybe, you are cheering on the sidelines when you spy Wonder Woman blazing past the ranks of competitive runners.

It's a bird, it's a plane... it's an informal fraternity of runners who revel in completing full marathons in Singapore, masked and costumed as superheroes.

Besides Batman and Wonder Woman, there is Catwoman, Captain America, Zorro and Peter Pan - all serious runners with more than 130 marathons among them.

Their goal? To stop gunning for record times and bring more fun to long races.

Mr Francis Chia, 51, who dresses up as Zorro, says marathons became boring for him after he completed several between 2006 and last year.

"I prefer to stop and help people who are in pain along the way because I know it's not easy," says the IT consultant, who is married and has a 14-year-old daughter.

His best marathon time is four hours and 40 minutes.

"I decided to stop going for personal records and dress up instead to lighten the mood of the race and cheer on the runners."

He chose Zorro because he already had a black compression running suit. Being Batman was out as another runner here was already dressing up as the superhero regularly.

"I thought of Zorro because he dresses in black. Although he's not a superhero, he's a common man with special skills and knowledge," he says. "So I thought I would be a common man, running along with others and suffering with them."

Costumed runners have exploded onto the global marathon scene in the last decade, notably the London, Boston, Tokyo and Hong Kong marathons.

Among the first in Singapore was Ms Jenap Said, who dresses up as Catwoman. The quality control manager in a market research firm began running in costume ever since her first marathon in 2006, the Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore.

"At first, I would change costumes for every run," says Ms Jenap, 54, who started running in conventional sports gear in 2002. "I've run as Santa Claus and Betty Boop before. But Catwoman was my first superhero costume and it soon became my signature. Many runners asked me if I felt warm running in the costume but I was okay."

The idea to wear the Catwoman costume came from her husband, who told her she "had the height and was not fat", she recalls with a laugh. They have a 35- year-old son and a 33-year-old daughter.

"I also love cats and, as a Muslim, I cannot wear anything too revealing. So I got a suit tailored. It's made of Lycra and is quite breathable for running in," she says.

She now finds it difficult to run well in "normal outfits" and adds: "I must run in a costume because it motivates me." Her best marathon time in costume is four hours and 50 minutes.

Her get-up has inspired another woman to reach for themed garb.

Ms Fia Permadi, 41, approached Ms Jenap at the Standard Chartered marathon in 2006 to ask her how she managed to run long distances in costume.

"She told me that it's all in your head," says Ms Permadi, a financial planner. "So I decided to do the same."

She started with simple costumes, including a salsa dancer and a witch. But in 2011, she fell after missing a step while alighting from a bus and broke her femur.

She took a year to recover and when she started running marathons again, she decided to take on a superheroine persona - as Wonder Woman.

"Wonder Woman is a celebration for myself, for coming back to running after breaking my femur," she says. "It was a challenge to get back into shape and running the full distance again, but I did it."

She completed the Standard Chartered marathon here last year in 51/2 hours. She says her 16-year-old daughter was initially embarrassed by her costume.

"At first, she was like, 'please don't do that, I will be very shy if my friends see you'," she recalls with a laugh. "But she got used to it and she now proudly points me out to her friends."

The hardest part about running in costume for her is keeping her wig in place, she adds.

"My hair is short but Wonder Woman must have long, flowy hair. So I have to wear a wig. It's very, very hot but I try not to think about it," she says.

Running coach and running events organiser Ben Swee, who dresses as Batman for endurance races, agrees that it is mind over matter. His costume consists of a body suit, belt, mask, cape and gloves that he bought online. He wears regular clothes under the costume as well.

"It does feel hot but I just go at a slower than normal place to reduce overheating. I want to do it because I want to motivate others and inject some fun into the event," says Mr Swee, 37, who is married and has no children. His best marathon time in costume is three hours and 50 minutes - 48 minutes slower than when he ran in regular attire.

Physical education teacher Poon Zi Li was inspired by Mr Chia and Ms Permadi after seeing them at races and getting to know them through a running club this year.

"I saw them having so much fun doing it, so I wanted to give it a try too. But I also wanted to complete the race within a decent time frame, so I designed a costume that still allowed me to run well," says Mr Poon, 34.

He chose Captain America as he is a fan of the Marvel comic character. He and his wife, also an avid runner, put together an outfit comprising black tights, a cap, a plastic mask, a shield of wire mesh and a singlet with a star and stripes sewn on.

He has since upgraded his costume to include a T-shirt and a metal shield.

Mr Poon, who has two daughters, aged four years and five months, says with a laugh that his older daughter now points out every Captain America figurine she sees and thinks it is him.

The newest costumed runner on the scene is Mr Michael Quek, 39, a bachelor who dresses up as Peter Pan.

Mr Quek, who works in sales support, chose the character by accident, after deciding just five hours before a race that he wanted to run in costume. He rushed to a costume rental store and chose the Peter Pan outfit as it was light enough not to interfere with his running.

He has run two races as Peter Pan and has clocked three hours and 32 minutes. He enjoys it and is still renting the outfit.

The only drawback, he jokes, is that he has to make sure he trains well each time.

"I don't want people to say Peter Pan is supposed to fly but he gave up halfway and walked," he says.

jennanid@sph.com.sg


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