On 20 September 2026, I traded my usual Sunday routine for a sea of green.
The Yellow Ribbon Run has traditionally been associated with the symbolic hills around Changi Prison. This year marked the 22nd anniversary
of the Yellow Ribbon movement, and for the first time, the flagship event moved
to the Kallang precinct.
I signed up for the 10km category. This was my first time participating
in the Yellow Ribbon Run. I was curious to see what it would feel like to run
for a cause that goes beyond the finish line.
Haze Watch
Haze
from Indonesia affected Singapore's air quality in the week leading up to the race. Fortunately, the skies
cleared in time for the 7am flag-off.
The first Downtown Line train departed from Expo and reached Tampines
East Station at 5.59am. About 30 minutes later, I arrived at Stadium Station
and stepped into an already vibrant atmosphere. As time went by, more than
7,000 participants, easily recognisable in their event T-shirts, were gathering
around the venue.
A mass-participation race is a logistical exercise in itself. The
baggage-deposit station was efficiently organised with little fuss. I had collected
my bib a week earlier at Suntec. Mine was #11030, with the leading “1”
indicating the 10km category and helping the marshals direct runners into the
correct holding pens.
Even the timing system was slightly different from what I was used to.
Instead of a timing chip attached to the back of the bib, we fitted passive
RFID tags to our shoelaces. Sitting near our feet, the tags recorded the
precise moment we crossed the timing gantries.
Then came the moment we had been waiting for. The flag dropped, and the
crowd moved enthusiastically.
Settled in with My Own Pace
The 10km route looped around the Kallang riverside. The course was always
crowded with little free space to manoeuvre. Once settled in, I found my usual
endurance rhythm, running between 8:00 and 8:30 minutes per kilometre. There
was little breeze that morning, and the heat and humidity quickly made
themselves felt. After just one kilometre, my body was already soaked.
I kept my steps short and steady, with an average cadence of 156 and a maximum
of 165 spm. At that pace, I could breathe and take in the surroundings.
That is one of the things I enjoy about distance running. You learn to
find a pace that you can sustain. Not the fastest pace. Not someone else's
pace. Your own. Perhaps that is also true of life.
While the 10km runners tackled the longer route, others were taking
part in the 5km event. Families joined the inaugural 888m Parent-Child Run.
Different distances, different abilities, but everyone was moving in the same
direction.
That was perhaps part of the Yellow Ribbon Run message too.
Beyond the Finish Line
I crossed the finish line near the National Stadium at around the
1-hour-20-minute mark.
That was roughly my usual pace for a casual run. Running has taught me
that improvement is not always about being faster. Sometimes, it is simply
about continuing.
There were runners ahead of me and behind me. Some were much faster;
others were taking their time. I did not feel the need to compete with any of
them. I was running against my own mind and body.
After crossing the finish line, I queued for a cup of 100PLUS and my
finisher's medal. The race was well organised, and I found the overall
experience much smoother than the Great Green Run I took part in this June.
The medal was not what stayed with me. It was the idea behind the
yellow ribbon.
We Are Each Other's Second Chances
The event registration fees support the core members of the CARE
Network, including Yellow Ribbon Cares, the Singapore Anti-Narcotics
Association (SANA), and the Singapore After-Care Association (SACA).
The Yellow Ribbon Project has engaged more than 300,000 Singaporeans
since 2004. On race day, thousands of them gathered under the message of
building “A Nation Beyond Second Chances” and moving beyond the stigma of a
criminal past.
One phrase caught my attention: “We Are Each Other's Second Chances.”
A second chance is not simply about starting over after making a
mistake. Forgiveness may help someone get back on their feet. Rebuilding a life
in society requires much more — employment, education, family, community
support, and people willing to give someone another opportunity.
A second chance is a long journey. And perhaps running is not such a
bad metaphor for that journey.
None of us learns to walk without falling first. We make mistakes in
life. We make poor decisions at work. We take wrong turns. Sometimes we stop.
Sometimes we have to find our way back.
Personal growth is rarely a straight line. It is more like running a
long distance: try, stumble, adjust, slow down, find your rhythm, and keep
going. It is about the opportunities to start again, and again.
A race has a starting line and a finishing line. Life is not quite so
simple. For some people, getting to the starting line again may be an
achievement.
The important thing is not how quickly they get there, or whether they
move at the same pace as everyone else. It is that they are given a chance to
move forward.
Perhaps that is what “Beyond 2nd Chances” really means. A second chance
does not erase the past. The past has happened, and its consequences remain.
But the past does not have to determine the next chapter.
Just as I have learned to accept my own pace on the 10km course,
perhaps society also needs to give people the space, support and time to find
their way again.
The finish line matters. But sometimes, the most important part of the
journey is being given the chance to start.
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