Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 Set To Take Off In June With The Aim Of Being Sustainable

Launch of Standard Chartered KL Marathon 09

RM 350,000 biggest ever cash prize for a marathon in Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur, 20 January 2009 – The inaugural Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 is set to place Malaysia on the global map of marathons by being a sustainable event. Following in the footsteps of eight successful Standard Chartered Marathons spanning four continents, the Race offers the biggest prize money ever for a marathon in Malaysia (RM 350,000) with a guaranteed prize pool for Malaysian runners.

Octagon, a division of CMGRP (M) Sdn. Bhd and Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad officially launched Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009, today. The launch was officiated by the Minister of Youth and Sports, YB Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob. Endorsed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 is also sanctioned by the Malaysia Amateur Athletic Union (MAAU), International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), and the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS).

YB Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri said in his speech,

“Our vision at the Ministry of Youth and Sports is to develop an active, healthy and energetic community. Specifically, we aspire to realise this by making running an accessible sport for all to enjoy.

A world-class, international race such as the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009 lends support to this goal by fostering the spirit of excellence not just among professional athletes but among all Malaysians, from the youngest to the oldest of them.”

Octagon who are specialists in sporting events worldwide, aims to attract 12,500 participants for what is expected to be the marathon of the year. Ivan Brixi, Managing Director for Octagon in Asia, elaborated,

“We aspire for this race to become a race for everyone – professional athletes, amateurs, families with children, corporate and NGO bodies and anyone who wants to be a part of something fun and inspirational.

We have every intention to make this Marathon a sustainable one – both by “greening” it and through the charity element. This means we will do our best to use recyclable materials where possible for the runners’ giveaways and encourage KL to become a car-free zone for the day. Indeed we will do everything in our power to reduce the carbon footprint of this event.

The Race will start from Merdeka Square on 28 June 2009. The route for the marathon will showcase some of the capital’s most famous landmarks, making it an ideal attraction for tourists and out-of-towners.”

Julian Wynter, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad said,

“We are very excited to add KL to the Standard Chartered series of marathons. In all eight countries where we sponsor Marathons, each has created a real buzz amongst the marathon-running community globally and we know that Standard Chartered KL Marathon will be no exception.”

“Standard Chartered Marathons characterise the values and attitudes we believe in and live by every day – having a can-do attitude, the courage to try, and the stamina and determination to go the extra mile, no matter what. They also embody our Right Partner promise to our governments, our communities, and our people – to help our communities grow and prosper.”

Octagon’s goal is to establish the Standard Chartered KL Marathon as the best in the region and to ultimately achieve the Silver and Gold recognition from IAAF within the next 5 years.

Octagon proudly welcomes Standard Chartered Malaysia as the Title Sponsor and MSIG Insurance (Malaysia) Bhd as a Gold Sponsor in the Insurance category. More sponsors will be announced in the coming months.
_____________________________________________________________________

For media enquiries, please contact:

Standard Chartered Malaysia
Karen R Yap, Senior Manager, Corporate Affairs +6 03 2781 7257
Karen-R.Yap@standardchartered.com +6012 292 6780

For Octagon: Weber Shandwick Malaysia, at 03-7843 3100, or;
Alina Morais amorais@webershandwick.com (017 323 3078 / 03 7843 3125)
Suninthini Ramalo sramalo@webershandwick.com (012 635 6351 / 03 7843 3131)



Standard Chartered – leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East

Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad, a member of the Standard Chartered Group was established in Malaysia in 1875 and locally incorporated on 1 July 1994. As Malaysia’s first bank, Standard Chartered leads the way through product innovation, consistent and strong growth performance and sustainability initiatives. It provides a comprehensive range of financial products and services including retail and wholesale banking for individuals, small and medium-sized enterprises, corporate and institutions through its network of 37 branches across Malaysia.

In 2001, Standard Chartered established a global shared service centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to provide software development, banking operations and IT support services to the Bank in up to 70 countries – the first international bank to do so in Malaysia. It now houses the biggest software development company in the country, International Software Centre Malaysia (ISCM). Standard Chartered’s two other global shared service centres are in Chennai, India and Tianjin, China.

Another wholly-owned subsidiary of the Group, Price Solutions Sdn. Bhd is also located in Malaysia. The company promotes and markets Standard Chartered’s financial products in Malaysia through a network of direct sales agents.

Standard Chartered Saadiq Berhad, its Islamic Banking subsidiary was established in November 2008. It offers a comprehensive range of Shariah-compliant products and services to individuals and corporates through its first Saadiq financial centre (branch) located in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.

Standard Chartered employs more than 5,000 employees in all its Malaysian operations.

Octagon

At Octagon, sports and entertainment are our passions. And it's been that way for nearly five decades. From a foundation in athlete representation dating to the 1960s to the emerging as one of the first agencies of its kind to offer strategic consulting, Octagon has been a thought leader and agent for change in sports and entertainment content marketing. Octagon globally has 900+ employees in 18 countries and works with more than 500 of the world's top companies and organizations. Worldwide, Octagon manages more than 5,200 events and $3 billion of investment in activation of sponsorships, ranging from entitlements of major properties to grassroots events.

Octagon represents over 800 athletes and celebrities. Our services include career and financial planning and management, securing endorsements, managing and creating ties to the community and cause related programs. Contracts negotiated by Octagon for athlete clients are in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Octagon also manages a variety of sports properties with a principal focus on tennis, golf and running. Some of the major properties managed by Octagon in Asia include Beijing International Marathon (China), Toray PPO Tennis Championships (Japan) and World Cup Gymnastics (China) amongst many others.

Octagon in Malaysia is a division of CMGRP (MALAYSIA) SDN BHD a registered company under the laws of Malaysia. CMGRP (MALAYSIA) SDN BHD is a member of IPG (Interpublic Group) a company listed on the NYSE stock exchange and a communications giant globally. Octagon Asia Pacific network spans the world’s most populous and dynamic region. Our regional headquarters are based in Beijing, and we have a growing network of offices in this region across 8 countries serving the sports community.

We have established our offices in Malaysia recently and we believe that in this dynamic and growing economy we would be able to help the growth of sports industry through our expertise. We are committed to our growth and our goal is to assist the overall sports development in Malaysia.

posted by pm55