Hong Kong marathon runners urged to keep warm before and during race
Chief manager of Hospital Authority calls for precautions ahead of Sunday event, while Observatory forecasts cold weekend with possible ice
Hong Kong’s marathon runners should dress to protect themselves from the cold and do a long warm-up before the start of the race on Sunday, the Hospital Authority has urged, as the Observatory has predicted chilly weather over the weekend with the possible appearance of ice in certain areas.
The Observatory said temperatures could drop to 13 degrees Celsius (55 Fahrenheit) on Friday evening, further dipping to 11 degrees on Saturday morning and 9 to 10 degrees on Sunday morning, when the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon takes place.
“Participants should pay attention to keeping their hands and heads warm ahead of the race. They should also stay hydrated,” Dr Larry Lee Lap-yip, chief manager at the authority, told a radio programme on Friday.
He highlighted the importance of a long warm-up, adding that “while runners are very experienced, they should not neglect to [take measures to] keep warm even if the body [naturally] warms up while they are working out”.
Hon Kai-kwong, a senior scientific officer at the Observatory, said that if temperatures on Sunday met the forecast of 9 to 10 degrees, it would be the coldest day the city had experienced so far this winter.
“Winds could be fairly strong, too, so wind chill will be more pronounced with our bodies feeling a lower temperature than it actually is,” he said.