Malakoff University Duathlon Series Gears Up For 800 Participants

~ Run-Bike-Run Tri-Series To Power Local Duathlete Community

18 April 2012, Kuala Lumpur – As part of its efforts to boost the local “Duathlete Community” and drum-up further interest in the sport, Malakoff Corporation Berhad (Malakoff) launched the Malakoff University Duathlon Series (MUDS) for the sixth time, targeting over 800 amateur and first-time participants in this exciting run-bike-run multi sport event.

MUDS, an initiative under Malakoff’s flagship Corporate Social Responsibility platform, the Malakoff Community Partnerships, is a three-legged challenge that is scheduled to be held over consecutive weekends starting 12 May at Universiti Malaya (UM), followed by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) on 19 May with the grand finale at Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM) on 26 May.

Speaking at the launch, Zainal Abidin Jalil, Chief Executive Officer of Malakoff said, “We are excited about the Malakoff University Duathlon Series as we believe it is a great platform for participants, especially the youth, to make the next step forward towards becoming a professional duathlete.”

“In fact, we are proud to have witnessed some young budding athletes who first participated in MUDS, thereafter challenging themselves even further by joining international duathlon tournaments and displaying their top-quality performance,” he added.

Since the inaugural MUDS in 2003 which attracted 321 participants, the Series has continued to gain momentum in Malaysia recording more than 620 athletes in 2011. Given the popularity of the event, a growing number of athletes from public and private are also taking up duathlons and joining MUDS to venture into multi-sport races.

Keeping the race distance to manageable levels, the Series will kick-start the first leg at UM with a 3.5km Run - 11.4km Bike - 3.5km Run, followed by a 3km Run - 13km Bike - 3km Run at UPM in the weekend ahead. The Series will culminate at UPNM with a 3km Run - 13.8km Bike - 3km Run in the subsequent week.

An avid duathlete since her university days, Nor Juliana Ali was clearly thrilled about the upcoming event and said, “I am a loyal follower of the Malakoff University Duathlon Series. I love the Series as it is a fun and friendly sport. Also, the race distance is just right - short enough for beginners, yet long enough for serious athletes to challenge their endurance and performance!”

“The Malakoff University Duathlon Series is definitely going to be challenging. Nonetheless it is an exciting adventure that everyone should join! I personally cannot wait to urge all my friends to participate with me as well,” she added.

The race is open in two categories, Individual and Relay. Under the Individual Category, it is divided to five sub-categories: Men’s University, Women’s University, Men’s Open, Women’s Open and Media. On the Relay front, it is open in two categories: Men’s Team Relay and Mixed Team Relay.

Top five winners for the University and Open categories plus the top three winners for the Team Relay and Media categories will receive placing medals. Participants who finish within the stipulated time will also be given certificates.

As an added incentive, trophies are also presented to the university with the highest participation in the three legs (Top University Trophy) and to the university with the best results throughout the series (Best University Trophy).

Registration is currently open for all categories. The closing date for registration is 7 May, 14 May and 21 May 2012 for the first, second and third leg of the race respectively.

For further details of the upcoming Malakoff University Duathlon Series, please visit http://www.duathlonseries.com.my/