Spartan Race Singapore 2015: The Tough Ironman

SINGAPORE – Mention the Spartans and an image of gritty men with rippling muscles and rock hard abs jostling at each other immediately comes to mind – and Gerrard Butler shouting “This is Sparta!”

But will the inaugural Singapore leg of the Spartan Race next weekend (Nov 15) race see similar nail-biting action? We spoke to three participants who will be pitting their strength against the obstacles, and with each other. Here, Teo Ser Luck talks about his expectations for the race.

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He may be a five-time Ironman triathlete, but there won’t be any rough play from Teo Ser Luck.

Singapore’s Minister of State, Ministry of Manpower and Mayor, North East District, who is the guest of honour participant in the Spartan Race, said such races are not about “shoving each other here and there”, neither is it “an ego trip” and a race to be the first.

Rather it is the community spirit in a race, where athletes encourage each other to overcome obstacles and everyone finishes together, said Teo.

“I beat you, you beat me, so what?” he said. “To get everybody going and completing it together, that would make it more meaningful and enjoyable.”

So we won’t see him channel Gerard Butler in the race then. “No lah, Butler is just an actor and he built his body for the movie. But the race is a race about fitness, about agility, about power, strength and endurance. It’s not acting, it’s real, raw stuff, man,” he quipped.

Teo, who is racing in the 5+ kilometres sprint with over 15 obstacles category, said he is going in for the fun and experience, so his training won’t veer too far from his daily regime.

Every morning, the early bird goes for either a run or cycles at around 5.15am. He follows that up with a round of exercises to build up his “strength, agility and power”, which comprises chin-ups, push-ups, gymnastic movements and lifting weights. The 47-year-old said he will also work on his burpees just in case; as Spartan participants who are unable to clear an obstacle may have to do penalty burpees instead.

“There are bound to be penalties along the way, you’ve got to be all prepared,” he said. “Honestly, the best way to prepare is to keep your exercise routine consistent, keep yourself relatively fit, and then when you do the race, it’ll be more enjoyable,” he added.

So does Teo have a pair of lucky socks or shoes he dons for races? Not really, he said. “The thing is not to use any items that you don’t use during training, so my running shoes will be the same pair I use during training, and the nutrition I eat will be the same.”

During this year’s SEA Games, Singapore marathon runner Ashley Liew slowed down to allow his fellow competitors, who had mistakenly taken the wrong path, to recover. Teo said that in this race, if put in that position, he would do the same. Even in Ironman, he pointed out, everyone slows down for each other and talks to each other all the time. “Ashley was racing for a medal, for the podium, for the country. Yet ... it wasn’t just about winning, he was being a sportsman – that to me is valued so much more than just being on the podium.”