And that’s a wrap.

The 46^th season of the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge Series concluded in beautiful, tropical, cosmopolitan Singapore with over 6,000 registered entrants from 200+ companies. It was a striking contrast from the very first Corporate Challenge held nearly five decades ago – with 200 entrants from 50 companies in New York’s Central Park.

And 2022 proved to be one of the most unique – and confidence-building – years in Corporate Challenge history. A total of 111,269 entrants from 3,956 companies took part at events held in 14 cities in seven countries on six continents. It proved that the Corporate Challenge format, after being abbreviated to a Virtual format during the COVID-19 pandemic, was still relevant to and welcome by the workforce.

For Singapore specifically, this was the 17th running and the first since March 28, 2019, when 14,380 racers, joggers, walkers and all others from 423 companies joined in. Traditionally held in the March/April timeframe, this is the first time the race was held here in November and the 5 p.m. starting horn near the F1 Pit Building at Marina Bay was the earliest in event history.

But those changes in date, time and event size did not affect the enthusiasm for the event.

"We're once again gearing up for the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge, and it is shaping up to be the most exciting year yet," said Howie Tan, Team Captain for Jacobs, an international professional services company.

"This has been an annual team event for us and like many other companies, we're really excited to be returning this year,” Tan continued. “We're looking forward to getting together outdoors with our teammates for an afternoon of team camaraderie, fitness and fun, while promoting mental health and wellbeing. Some of us are just breaking out our running shoes to join the fun, while some are definitely up for a healthy competition!"

Jacobs was one of the largest participating companies in the Corporate Challenge with 191 entrants. Event owner and operator J.P. Morgan led the way with 583 employees. BlackRock (162), Goldman Sachs (157), GIC Pte Ltd (150), Visa (150), Chevron (126), BNP Paribas (122), Fitch Group (105), and Munich Re Singapore (101) were also amongst the top 10 teams in contingent size.

“At Munich Re, we believe in the well-being of our colleagues, and we want to support that via events such as the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge where our staff have opportunities to mingle and interact with one another,” said Tobias Frenz, CEO, Munich Re Singapore.

Everyone ran the 3.5-mile (5.6km) race course for a good cause, to benefit  the Rainbow Centre, a not-for-profit organization which envisions a world where persons with disabilities are empowered and thriving in inclusive communities. The Centre works with partners to create opportunities for persons with disabilities to make meaningful contributions to their communities.

The individual winners were Gen Lin Foo of MOH Holdings in the men’s division with a winning time of 18:43 (5:21 pace) and Jasmine Teo of Ice in the women’s race with 21:17 (6:05 pace)

If those two names sound familiar, it’s because for each, it was their third individual Corporate Challenge titles. Lin Foo won his first in 2012 and then again in 2018. Teo was the 2017 and 2019 champion.

The J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge Series will return for its 47^th season in 2023 and will be announcing its city-by-city schedule soon.