If you are keen and have queries, please contact Coach Rameshon at 9100 4369 or you can email him at m.rameshon@gmail.com or swift.rameshon@gmail.com. Please refer to website http://flexifitness.com.sg (for more information on him and his programmes)
By Rameshon
Bsc (Hons) Degree in Physical Education, Loughborough University (1992-1994)
Masters in Education (University of Western Australia, 2005-2008)
DR BENEDICT TAN - FROM SAILING TO MARATHON (42.195KM)
(Three Times Sportsman of the Year Award Winner)
London Marathon 2010
On 25 April 2010, Dr Benedict Tan, took part in the London Marathon and did the run in a time of 3hrs 06min. This was considerably a good time indeed. Consistently, as a veteran runner, he has been hitting between 2hrs 56min and 3hrs 06min from the year 2008 till now.
Having said that I would like to discuss about the first meeting I had with him which made us train together. I shall then discuss on the interview I had with him after the London Marathon 2010. In the next article, I shall be doing a review on his book on "Run For Your Life".
Meeting after Berlin Marathon 2008
In Sept 2008, Daniel Ling and I took part in the Berlin Marathon. When both of us were there in Berlin, we really had a wonderful time there. We also met some nice people there. On the race day, Daniel ran and came in with a time of 2hrs 49min and I ran the race in 3hrs 31min. It was a dismal performance for me. I also felt that Daniel could have done even better. Daniel did the first 10km of the marathon in about 36 min flat and he still needs to complete another 32km. Just before coming to Berlin, Daniel ran the Bali race, a few weeks before in sub 36min, which was nearly a 36 min flat. Hence, I felt that he had accumulated lactic acid in the blood in the earlier part of the race and that must have hampered the last 10km timing. Anyway, I felt that it was another sub 2hrs 50min that he had achieved.
In the race, Dr Benedict Tan, in short, Dr Ben Tan, did the race in 3hr 01min. I was impressed with his performance because it was the first time I am witnessing a doctor doing very well in running. It was very difficult for me to imagine. Furthermore, he had beaten me in the Army Half-marathon and the Civil Service 5.8km race in the year 2008. I was seeing an impressive progression in him and I knew that he is capable of doing a sub 3hrs for the marathon, anytime, around that time. I thought he was very happy with his performance. However, it was proven otherwise.
That night, Daniel, Anne Date, Dr Benny, Dr Ben and his wife friends were there for dinner. Some German runners were actually parading their medals that they have finished the race while we were having our food. They were in high spirit, very happy, excited and kept showing their medals to people. They were open about it and were a friendly lot.
While the mood was more of a friendly and happy occasion type of occasion, it was not so for Dr Ben. At first, we talked about other things. After some time, Dr Ben eyes showed the determination of someone yearning to do a sub 3hr. His mere conversation showed just that. We exchanged ideas and then it was there that Daniel and I invited Dr Ben Tan and Dr Benny Goh to come and join us for our workouts, once a week, since he was not able to make it for all other days.
Workouts in Singapore
When we were back in Singapore, during our weekly sessions, I realised that Dr Ben was very independent, coupled with having a very high level of discipline and iron will to finish all my workouts when told to do so. Over a period of time, I realised that he was ready to break the sub 3 hours. We did workouts which could actually predict the performance time for the marathon. Hence, I predicted that he is ready to go down below sub 3hrs.
In the Singapore Standard Chartered Marathon 2008, the biggest surprise was I came in as the Men Open (local section) champion, Daniel came in second and Dr Ben came in third. Dr Ben had once shared with me that he only hoped in life to do a 3hr, which is 2hr 59min 59sec at least. In the race, in fact, he did a 2hrs 56min 20sec. The date was 7th Dec, 2008. There was triple joy for Dr Ben Tan, Daniel and myself.
For the details of the Singapore Standard Chartered Marathon 2008, please have a look at http://redsports.sg/2008/12/07/ben-tan-marathon/. Dr Ben's story implies that if there is a will, there is a way. Hence, let us look at this wonderful person who became a good friend during training. I feel that he is one of the finest sports personality in Singapore. My first article will talk about my interview with him as part one and in the subsequent article I will be writing a review of his book "Run For Your Life".
1. How many times have you won the Sportsman of the Year award?
Three times (Until recently, each individual could win the award a maximum of three times.)
2. Can you tell us on the sport that you were doing to achieve this and on the year that you received all these awards?
1991, 1994, 1995
3. How was your participation level in sport when you were a student in the then Hwa Chong Junior College?
Was sailing for Hwa Chong. I won the Asian Fireball Championships (the Fireball is a two-man dinghy) in Thailand, on my very first overseas regatta, at the age of 17. I was in Hwa Chong then.
4. Can you briefly say on the exact age that you took marathon running seriously?
35 years old.
5. What made you take up marathon running seriously?
I retired from competitive sailing in 1996, after the Atlanta Olympics. To keep fit and maintain my discipline, decided to pick up running. Although I train systematically, I would still consider myself a recreational runner - I have to draw a line there and resist being too competitive, as I had already closed the chapter on my competitive sporting days.
6. In the year 2008 and 2009, you came in third position in Men Open and second in the veteran category, respectively. Can you tell us about the feeling you had in achieving this?
In September 2008, I finished the Berlin Marathon in 3:01. I was upset that I was so close to going sub-3 but failed to do so. Coach Rameshon came to my rescue - he asked me to train with him and Daniel Ling and offered to help me break the 3-hour barrier. With just 6 weeks of training, I ran the 2008 Singapore Marathon in 2:56! Needless to say, I was elated and did not expect it, considering that it was so close to the Berlin Marathon and that Singapore was much hotter than Berlin. I completed the 2009 Singapore Marathon in 3:04. I wasn't too happy with that, but that's sports - you
can't always peak at the time you want to.
7. Why did you take part in the London Marathon?
I'm aiming to complete the Marathon Majors - Boston, Berlin, London, New York, Chicago. I've completed the first three and have two more to go. By finishing the London Marathon in 3:06, I qualified for the 2011 New York Marathon in November (qualification time for me is 3:10).
8. Can you describe the feeling of running the London Marathon 2010 while you were running throughout the run?
I almost failed to make it to the London Marathon, after going through a lot of trouble to secure a place. One week before my scheduled departure from Singapore, Eyjafjallajokull Volcano erupted. Fortunately, Heathrow airport reopened just one day before my scheduled departure from Singapore. The race was well organized, and there was huge crowd support.
9. Can you provide us with some details on the split timing that you were doing during the various running points, for example, 5km, 10km etc. during the London Marathon 2010 race?
I was aiming to go under 3:10 in order to qualify for New York. As a buffer, I planned to run at a steady 3-hour pace. Everything went according to plan until the 35 km mark, where I fell below the 3-hour pace. I knew I was on track for 3:10, so I simply enjoyed the sights for the last part of the race, running past Big Ben and finishing at Buckingham Palace!
10. Is there any difference between sailing and running?
I chose running because I wanted something that was diametrically different from sailing. While sailing is very technical, tactical, equipment-based, and strength-based; running is tactically simpler, uses minimal equipment, and is aerobically-based. This forced me to start from practically from scratch and transform myself from a 78-kg strength athlete to a 63-kg endurance athlete.
11. Do you still do sailing?
Yes
12. What is your next goal in marathon?
Completing the Marathon Majors. I usually do one overseas marathon and one local marathon each year, so I expect to complete the Majors in 2012. After that, I'll probably go for the exotic marathons, such as in Mongolia and East Timor, rather than the big-city marathons.
13. Can you tell us briefly on the book that you released last year on marathon running?
By pulling together the collective expertise of the best in sports medicine, sports science and coaching that Singapore can offer, I hope to share with fellow runners a systematic training approach that will fast-track them towards their running goals.
14. How was your parental support in the past when you were doing sailing or sports?
My father ensured that I was active in sports, as he strongly believed that through sports, we can build character and acquire important lessons in life. In retrospect, he couldn't be more correct. A lot of my values
were acquired outside - rather than inside - the classroom.
15. How is your wife's support in running?
My wife Alison runs recreationally and has done up to half marathons. She travels with me to my overseas marathons and takes part if there are 10 or 21 km categories.
16. What advice would you give to students who are aspiring to excel in balancing running and studies?
I don't believe that running interferes with studies. Running is physically tiring and studying is mentally tiring. When you are physically tired, you can still study; when you are mentally tired, you can still run.
You can't study 24 hours a day, and neither can you run the whole day either. I'm a lot more productive when I'm running regularly.
17. What advice would you give to adults and professionals who are aspiring to excel in balancing running and career?
See answer above, and replace 'studying' with 'working'.
18. Since you are now running after 40, what advice would you give to those who want to take up marathon running at 40 years and above?
See your doctor for a pre-participation screening. Once you are cleared by your doctor, the sky's the limit. If you have medical problems, you can still exercise, but under your doctor's supervision.
Note:
By Narayanan
Rameshon has taught in Hwa Chong Institution, plus several schools, and Republic Polytechnic as well. He has won many accolades and he was awarded Merit Award for 1991 marathon performance in breaking the national record of Singapore, at that time. He has made 22 male athletes to do marathon in sub-3hrs. He has made 7 female runners to do sub-4 hours for marathon, as well. He was inducted to the ‘Roll of Honour’ by the then College of Physical Education, organised by Singapore Olympic Academy, in 1998, for breaking the National record repeatedly 4 times, till he did 2hr 24min 22sec).
He also has a Coaching group and he trains them on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7pm at Botanic Gardens. Those interested can call him at 91004369 for coaching assistance, to improve performance. There is also personal training that he does for many in a week. You can e-mail him at swift.rameshon@gmail.com.
