Runners in the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon on Sunday should gear up for cold weather as the mercury will drop to as low as 9 degrees Celsius under the influence of an intense winter monsoon.
The Hong Kong Observatory said on Friday that an intense winter monsoon is set to reach the southern coast of China this morning, leading to a significant drop in temperatures, while the Cold Weather Warning will be issued later today.
“It is expected that the temperatures on Saturday morning will be around 11 degrees in the urban areas and will drop further to about 9 to 10 degrees on Sunday. It may become the lowest record this winter,” the Observatory said.
The weather watchdog noted that it will be very cold in the mornings across the New Territories over the weekend, adding that temperatures over the high ground may be close to freezing.
Meanwhile, with the Hong Kong Marathon set to take place on Sunday morning, Lobo Louie Hung-tak, senior lecturer of health and physical education at the Education University of Hong Kong, said the sudden change in weather will for sure have an impact on the runners.
He said the cold weather will slow down the blood flow in runners, making running more challenging.
He also advised the runners to spend more time warming up, pay attention to their diet 1 to 2 hours before the race, ensure an adequate intake of water, have sufficient sleep the night before the competition, start at a slower pace, and run within their limits.
