2005-11-01
STANDARD CHARTERED MARATHON UNVEILS
10TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION ACTIVITIES

[Hong Kong, 1 November 2005]: Standard Chartered and the Hong Kong Amateur Athletic Association (HKAAA), title sponsor and event organizer, respectively, of the Standard Chartered Marathon, today announced a series of exciting activities to mark the tenth anniversary of the event, which will be held on 12 February 2006. The exciting celebratory activities launched today include the Standard Chartered Marathon 10th Anniversary Mosaic Sculpture Exhibition and the "Run With Me" Sports Shoe Painting School Fund Raising Campaign.

Present at today's press conference were Mr Mervyn Davies, Group Chief Executive of Standard Chartered PLC; Mr Mike DeNoma, Group Executive Director of Standard Chartered PLC; Mr Peter Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited; and Mr William Ko, Chairman of HKAAA and Henry Wanyoike, Olympic gold medallist and global goodwill ambassador for Standard Chartered's Seeing is Believing Campaign.

Speaking at the press conference, Mr Sullivan said: "This year, our 10th Anniversary, is a huge milestone for our Marathon and for Standard Chartered Bank. In many ways, our sponsorship of the Hong Kong Marathon parallels Standard Chartered's commitment and dedication to the community of Hong Kong. We are here for the long run, and we are proud to be the Right Partner to all of our customers and athletes participating in the race."

Mr Davies added: "We've taken the success of the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon and applied it to other cities around the world with The Greatest Race on Earth. This unique event in the field of marathon running, where participants in the Greatest Race on Earth will compete in a relay race through Singapore, Mumbai and Nairobi, before ending here in Hong Kong. Our inaugural race early this year was a tremendous success, and we look forward to growing the Greatest Race on Earth with the same drive and ambition that has made the Hong Kong Marathon the wonderful community event that it is today."

Among the activities announced today was the Standard Chartered Marathon 10th Anniversary Mosaic Sculpture Exhibition. The Exhibition was organised by the Youth Arts Festival with the support of talented local artists Gareth Dunster, Karen Pao and Ho Yuen Leung; as well as over 200 students from ten secondary schools. Together, they created a series of ten glass mosaic runner sculptures, one for each year of the Standard Chartered Marathon. Through the medium of colourful glass tiles, the artists have demonstrated the energy and spirit of marathon athletes, as well as the numerous health benefits of this exciting sport.

To celebrate this special anniversary Marathon, the mosaic sculptures will be displayed in Standard Chartered Bank branches in Central and Mongkok from 2 November. The exhibition will then tour a series of public venues including Victoria Park and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre throughout November 2005. To add to the buzz, the sculptures hold the key to a Treasure Hunt competition that runs through mid-December.

Standard Chartered also announced the Seeing is Believing "Run With Me" Campaign, represented by visually impaired Kenyan runner Henry Wanyoike. Henry is the official global goodwill ambassador of the Seeing is Believing Community Programme, which has the aim of restoring eyesight to one million visually-impaired people around the world.

As part of the Seeing is Believing "Run with Me" Campaign for 2006, Standard Chartered has introduced a new fundraising initiative for local schools, the "Sports Shoe Painting School Fundraising Campaign". Students are participating in the programme by expressing their individual creativity and concern for others by painting and decorating the sports shoes in any style or colour. Submitted along with a minimum HK$30 donation to the campaign, all of the shoes will be gathered into a giant display at Victoria Park on 19 November 2005.

Since its inception in 1997, the Standard Chartered Marathon has become Hong Kong's largest participatory sporting event, as well as one of its signature international events - attracting everyone from elite international athletes to families from the local community. Confirming the Marathon's broad appeal, Mr William Ko, Chairman of event organiser HKAAA, announced that the number of participants has reached 28,000 since the launch of public registrations in September.

Over 35,000 runners are expected to participate in the event in February 2006, cheered on by tens of thousands more volunteers and spectators - making the 10th Anniversary Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon the biggest in the history of this extremely successful community sporting event.

Standard Chartered Hong Kong is in its 10th year of title sponsorship to the Hong Kong Marathon. Other sponsors and supporting parties include: New Balance Athletic Shoes (Hong Kong) Limited, Hotel Miramar Hong Kong, Watsons Water, Citizen Watches (HK) Limited, Commercial Radio, Hong Kong Tourism Board, Information Services Department, Western Harbour Tunnel Co. Ltd and Tsing Ma Management Limited.

Released on behalf of Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited by Octagon Greater China.

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