More than 80 runners used Marina Square shopping centre's two floors as makeshift tracks before shops opened for business. (AFP pic)SINGAPORE: The pounding of running shoes echoes through a Singapore shopping mall as fitness enthusiasts desperate to exercise take refuge from choking haze.

Smoke from wildfires in neighbouring Indonesia has sent air quality in the city-state plummeting to its worst levels in more than a decade in recent weeks, cancelling outdoor activities.

Those seeking exercise, including runners training for international events, have found an unconventional alternative: air-conditioned shopping malls.

On Sunday more than 80 runners turned the corridors of Marina Square shopping centre into makeshift running tracks, clocking laps past storefronts on two floors before shops opened for business.