The Hong Kong Standard Chartered Marathon is one of the most major marathon events in the world, and attracts not only professional athletes but also amateur runners who treasure health and some fun. As this marathon event will expand to 45,500 runners this year, safety issues are widely of concern. The fact is, the Hong Kong Standard Chartered Marathon has more advanced medical support and a low injury rate whilst compared to other major marathon events around the globe such as the London and New York Marathons. The Auxiliary Medical Service here deserves praise.

Dr. Ben Fong and Dr. Chan Man Chung from the government department Auxiliary Medical Service (AMS) are the persons in charge of the on day medical support for the Hong Kong Standard Chartered Marathon. Dr. Fong is currently the Unit Commander of the Health Protection Unit. He has assisted in many emergencies and disasters such as the China Airlines plane crash in 1999 and the anti-WTO protests in 2005. His partner, Dr. Chan Man Chung, is a very experienced private medical practitioner and has joined the AMS for 25 years. He started to help in the marathon 7 years ago.

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According to Dr Fong, the AMS will have 20 first aid posts staffed by trained volunteers along the route and at the start and finish line, as well as ambulances and more than 400 trained personnel this year. The aid posts are very well equipped with Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and emergency medical kits. The AMS First Aid Bicycle Team will patrol the route with AED and other equipment. As a matter of fact, most runners who suffer minor injuries can be treated on-site and there is no need for them to be taken to hospital.

The two doctors remind the athletes, especially the amateur runners of 3 accident black spots along the route. The first black spot is the Kowloon portal of the Western Harbour Tunnel. "You can’t imagine how steep the portal is," said Dr. Chan. "Many runners twist their ankles there."

The second black spot is the 10km turning point. According to the AMS statistics, lots of runners were seized with cramps by then and had to be helped.

The third black spot is the finish point. When the runners exert their utmost strength at the final destination, they collapse and need to be carried away. The doctors also noticed that the injury numbers increased dramatically when it rained. Therefore, dear runners, take special attention if you need to run in the rain.

There were about 4,800 cases of injured suffering cramps or strains, while 232 had minor complaints such as twisted ankles and scraped knees that required medical attention. Of the 22 people taken to hospital, one of them died with heart failure last year. Dr. Fong said that most of the wounded were amateur runners: "People tend to overestimate their limits and push too hard. They have no idea a marathon is a huge challenge for the non-professional athlete."

Nevertheless, Dr. Chan assures us that there is nothing to worry about. "I think the number of medical cases is very normal considering the huge number of participants. We have better medical support and lower injury numbers compared to other major marathon events in London, New York City or Singapore. Hong Kong people should be proud of themselves"

"The AMS and the organisers will provide all necessary support for runners," he said. "However, runners should be responsible for their own health. They are the ones who know their own bodies well." He suggested every runner ask him/herself: "should I run today?" at the starting line. Even you only feel a bit unwell, you should withdraw and take up the challenge next year instead.