144 finalists remained undeterred at the end of day two of The MediaCorp Subaru Car Challenge 2015 – The Asian Face-Off. Compared to the past three years, this year’s Challenge has the lowest dropout rate at the close of day 2. Last year, only 99 contestants remained standing at the 30 hour mark, while 2013 and 2012 had 113 and 80 participants respectively.
In 2014 and 2013, participants had to endure extreme inclement weather, with scorching hot afternoons and cold, rainy evenings. However, participants this year have been blessed with cloudy skies and cooling weather. Last year’s winner, G Jaishanker said: “Although the dropout rate is relatively low at this point of time, the hardest part of the Challenge is at the 60 hour mark as participants will experience hallucinations. That is when the real competition begins – we are still in the early stages.” Even after no sleep for close to 30 hours, many still displayed tenacity and resilience, determined to win the coveted a Subaru XV Premium worth up to MYR 114,000. This is the first time in the Challenge’s 14-year history that the COE is bundled as part of the grand prize.
In addition to the excitement and anticipation of this year’s Challenge, visitors will get to experience exciting onsite activities such as The Walking Dead Live Showcase where visitors will stand a chance to win a pair tickets to Comic Con 2016 in USA. Subaru is also proud to be the official automobile sponsor for the Les Misérables Musical in Singapore next year and five lucky visitors will stand a chance to win one pair of Category 3 tickets* each to the musical when they come down to take a selfie with the Les Misérables Subaru car display. Natalie Pickles from Taiwan (contestant from Season 2 of Asia’s Next Top Model) and Marlena Monika Sta Maria from Philippines (contestant from Season 3 of Asia’s Next Top Model) will make their appearance throughout this year’s Car Challenge.
A combined 400 determined contestants from Singapore and across the region will endure through fatigue and sleep deprivation as they place their right palms firmly within the surface area of the palm decals. They will be given a 5-minute break once every 6 hours – at 7pm, 1am, 7am and 1pm throughout the competition. Supporters will also play a crucial role which may make or break the contestants. Additional rest breaks can be given to contestants with supporters who take part in an online game at www.carchallenge2015.com. The top 10 game scorers on the scoreboard will earn their supported participant an extra 5-minute break. The scoreboard will reset after every break and the public contest will end upon the last 11 standing contestants.
In addition to being eligible for the Grand Prize, regional contestants will also compete for additional titles and cash prizes. The title of Country Winner and a cash prize of S$1,000 will be awarded to the final standing representative of each participating region. The last standing regional contestant will win the Asian Winner title and walk away with an additional S$5,000 cash. The country or region, whose participants have the longest combined standing time, will be awarded the Country Team Winner title along with a cash prize of S$10,000 to be equally divided among the team. They will also stay at Mandarin Orchard Singapore, the official hospitality partner for this year’s Challenge.
