Two Ordinary Runners with Extraordinary Feat

Note by KC: Dr. Tan and NgaeKH completed the Sahara Ultramarathon on last Saturday 31 March. They have just returned to Paris. Ngae completed the race in 50h 40m 43s (position 571/727) and Dr. Tan completed in 55h 01m 51s (position 627/727). More than 30 runners could not complete. That was their toughest challenge so far.

They will be visiting Dr. Tan' s friend and daughter in London for a well-rewarded holiday. They will depart from London on 6th April and arrive at KL Sentral at about 8pm on Saturday 7 April.

To see how they were in action, visit http://www.darbaroud.com/index_uk.php for results and their smiling faces in the face of adversity.

BRAVO! Congratulations on their success in the Sahara Ultramarathon race -- touted by its French organizer as the toughest foot race on Earth.

Written by Chiam (P8):

Mr. Ngae has just completed the Sahara Ultramarathon recently. He is a simple man with a kind-hearted look, but he accomplished a lot by being focused and persevered in wanting to contribute to others by running for charity. He thinks for others in what he is doing.

I still remember during his days of training, he observed an old man scavenging rubbish bins for cans to sell and not receiving help from others in the form of begged money. He said, "I really respect this old man who have the self-esteem in working for his food and not accepting help from others." He also said that he has learned to like walking (arising from his training) and observing things how they unfold. The simple things in life enrich his view and wisdom.

Dr. Tan too, is simple and unconventional. I last saw him at Singapore International Marathon in December 2006. We were running together and it was drizzling. We were at the last 5km; I ran passed him and say “Hi”. He was steady and relaxing in his pace. He gave me a warm and vibrant smile: radiating to me a sense of camaraderie and team spirit as we are all are together, regardless of who we are.

I thought in my heart, a person of his stature can always chose to play golf or snugged comfortably at home, why was he running the marathon in rain or shine? I reflected and realized that it is the basic values that could have motivated him to do this: it is the passion in the things we do; it is the belief that we still can do; it is the urge to participate actively while we can; it is the knowledge and wisdom that happiness and fulfilment is within our reach when we have paid the price.

Their “nothing is impossible” mission tells us one very useful lesson: when we believe beyond a shadow of a doubt in the basic values of our life and make full use of what have bestowed upon us; for example, good health and the ability to walk and run, then we are ready to do more for ourselves, family, friends and mankind.

They are the leaders and role models we can have reference in our life in years to come.

BRAVO!

By Chiam

Note: all photos are extracted from the Sahara Ultramarathon official web site.