Just about every noted running authority has an opinion on whether there’s an “ideal” physique required if one is to become an outstanding runner. This, of course, flies in the face of those who claim that all bodies are great running machines—that there is no such thing as body types engineered to beat the competition, finish first and grab more medals than most. But, ask anyone who points to Kenyans and stars like Jamaican runner Usain Bolt when the debate begins. Surely, this is no coincidence, you think.

With the haze set to linger, your next outdoors run – no matter how beautiful the park, how lush the nature trail, or how alluring your favourite route is – is likely off your schedules for some time. While we can sit around dreaming of the elusive clear days during the monsoon season, we sometimes need to take a breather (pun intended) away from the smog.

A group of ultra-marathoners will brace the hot and humid summer during the third Oman Desert Marathon, held from 6 to 13 November 2015. Aside from water provided at the checkpoints and sleeping bags at the camps, each runner has to be completely self-sufficient.

The Blackmores Sydney Running Festival 2015 was a double-first for me – first time participating in the event and first time Team FatBird was appointed Training Partner in association with CTC Travel and Destination NSW. The event was also awarded the much-coveted IAAF Gold certification last year, making it a must-run event for the running community in Singapore. As it was my maiden marathon experience at the Blackmores Sydney Running Festival, I decided to go for the full experience and signed up for the Full Marathon.

Have you ever been curious about which marathons and running events are the biggest in terms of numbers of participants/finishers? We had enough curiosity about it to take a look at the figures and find out. It can be confusing if you talk only about the running events, because there can be a massive number of participants, but they don’t all enter the marathon distance, they are spread across all distances within the event, that is why we are listing both biggest marathons and biggest running events.

Do you think there will be zero AIDS in our world one day? Yes, zero. Well, UNICEF hopes so! Supporting UNICEF’s global agenda to achieve an AIDS-free world, the 10th UNICEF Charity Run will be held on Sunday, 29 November 2015 – two days before World AIDS Day on December 1st. More than 13,000 runners are expected to come together in the half marathon, 10 km, 5 km and 3 km races.