Report: Olympic Day Run 2008

By Aiman Cheah Tiong Chap

Date: 29 June 2008
Time: 7.30 a.m.
Venue: Dataran Merdeka

I was not a participant in this event but on duty as a finisher official for Category C - Men's Veteran.

Today is certainly not a memorable day for me. For the first time being an official since 1988 I was being shouted "STUPID". I think the woman who shouted at me was quite right. She must have been very SMART because she did not do as others would do. There would be only one inventor of an item in the world or one leader in a group, community or country. They are different from the rest and that make them outstanding.

I was busy looking out for Category C finisher and writing their bib number on the finishing card when this woman came and asking which funnel she should go! She was going zig-zagged and shouted STUPID when she found her funnel.

Normal runners could have seen the and read the category on the banner as far as 30 metres before the finishing line. In fact, McDonald's had a higher standard. Normally, the banner would have the Category Letter as well, A, B, C and so on. This time the categories were spelt out - Men's Open, Women's Open, etc. Any literate runner with normal eyesight would have no problem finding their way. I must say that occasionally, I did come across runners who were not not sure of their funnel but they would signal their doubt much further before the finsihing line and not right at the funnel!

Anyway, I felt happy when I left the venue because there were more runners who appreciated my task. A simple smile and 'Thank you' would go a long way.