CebuRunning

Sugbu Triathlon, an online community of runners, swimmers, bikers and triathletes, is organizing an 8-kilometer run that will start at The Outpost in Nivel Hills and end at the Zipline in Busay, Cebu City.

The “Run to the Clouds” race will be held on March 21, the group said in an announcement posted in its website.

The group said the 8-kilometer route (see interactive map at the end of this article) “is doable enough for newbie runners and challenging enough for intermediate and advanced runners looking for a new road racing experience.”

Continue reading Cebu triathlon community organizes Busay 8K run

The Cebu City Government will set aside P35 million to P40 million in the next scheduled supplemental budget to pay for the replacement of the rubberized track oval at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC).

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña previously pledged to set aside funds for the repair of the tracks once City Hall starts earning from its South Road Properties (SRP) project. With the recent down payment by SM Prime Holdings Inc. of P677 million for the SRP lot it purchased, Osmeña says the City now has funds for the repair.

CEBU CITY SPORTS CENTER TRACK OVAL. The Cebu City Government is set to replace the 8-lane 400-meter rubberized track oval of the Cebu City Sports Center. The facility will be closed during the repairs, which could take from 2 to 3 months. Click on photo to enlarge image. (PHOTO BY MAX LIMPAG)

Cebu City Councilor Sylvan “Jack” Jakosalem said City Hall will immediately bid the contract out once funds are allocated.

CCSC manager Ricky Ballesteros said repair would take from 2 to 3 months. Ballesteros said the CCSC will be closed while the track is being repaired.

With the closure of the CCSC oval, Jakosalem said he will ask Osmeña to allow runners at the SRP. This is great news for Cebu runners—not only will we be getting a new track oval in a few months time, we’d get the chance to run at the SRP, which is a great route to run on, based on Cebu City Marathon experience.

In front of the traffic sign that announced a 20 kilometers per hour (kph) speed limit inside the Asiatown IT Park, Aileen Tolentino gave her all.

She covered the last 300 meters to the finish line within the automotive speed limit but at a combustive endgame 18 kph before collapsing at the finish line in a guttural scream.

“Aaahhh!!!” her victory cry a shriek of pain. Tolentino snatched the Cebu City Marathon Women’s 42K crown from Mary Grace delos Santos in the final minute and paid for it with a body racked by cramps.

SHE GAVE HER ALL. Aileen Tolentino collapses after winning the Cebu City Marathon 42K Women’s event. CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE. (PHOTO BY IGI MAXIMO OF PabolFC.com)

The celebration would come later.

Three hours, 15 minutes and 30 seconds from starting her run, Tolentino lay screaming in agony, her head saved from slamming into the pavement by race organizer Meyrick Jacalan. Thirteen seconds later, delos Santos crossed the finish line, buried her face in her hands, and leaned slightly on pacer Elmer Bartolo.

Until that 20 kph traffic sign, you’d have thought the race was delos Santos’s to take.

Delos Santos, the top female runner in Cebu, built an early lead at the South Road Properties, running at least a minute ahead of her long-standing rival. Someone who saw the two runners there said he thought Tolentino was done for, lagging behind a still fresh-looking delos Santos.

But near the Bureau of Internal Revenue office in Banilad, Tolentino already caught up with delos Santos. With their teammates and pacers, the two ran in a pack.

Continue reading A runner’s heart

Official race times for the very successful Cebu City Marathon 2010 are now out. The times are based on ChampionChip data.

Kenyan Willy Tanui dominated the 42K race by finishing the race in 2 hours 30 minutes and 57 seconds. Kenyan missionary Simon Losiaboi, who is currently based in Cebu, placed second with a time of 02:30:57. Eric Panique finished as the fastest Filipino by placing third with his time of 02:32:23.

Kenyan David Kipsang was fourth with his time of 02:35:41 while Elmer Sabal placed fifth with a time of 02:37:23.

On a personal note, I finished my first 21K in 02:04:59. I aimed for a sub-2 finish but couldn’t pass up witnessing the drama in the race between Aileen Tolentino and Mary Grace delos Santos in the last few kilometers.

Here are the official race times:

The results are searchable, to get your time, go to your category and use the search bar at the lower right portion.

Continue reading Cebu City Marathon 42K and 21K results now out

On the halfway point of her 21-kilometer race during the Mindanao eliminations of the Milo Marathon on Nov. 8, 2008, Mary Grace delos Santos blacked out.

The Zamboanga City native lay sprawled and bloodied on one of the roads of Cagayan de Oro City after a motorcycle, sent flying by a rampaging truck, hit her.

“I don’t know how long I lay there,” delos Santos said, her expression still pained while recalling the point of impact a year later on the tracks of the Cebu City Sports Center, “I blacked out.”

IRON WOMAN. Mary Grace delos Santos, her face bloodied after getting hit by a motorcycle in a road accident, finishes first in the women’s 21K race in the Mindanao eliminations of the Milo Marathon in 2008. CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE. ( PHOTO FROM SUN.STAR CAGAYAN DE ORO)

She also does not know whether she was between the wheels of the truck or beside them when the vehicle continued to run after the accident.

What she recalls, however, is her fierce determination to finish the race that she was already leading. She got on her feet and started checking her body gingerly for injuries before breaking into a run.

“People were telling me to pull out of the race,” delos Santos said in Bisaya, “but I wanted to continue. I wanted to finish the race. I was determined to finish the race.”

Continue reading ‘I’m gonna die but I have to win the race first’

Cebu runners will see a familiar face wearing race bib no. 1 in this Sunday’s Cebu City Marathon—Kenyan missionary Simon Losiaboi.

Losiaboi, who has won all the races in Cebu that he joined since he arrived here late last year, will be running his first full marathon this Sunday. Being the only Cebu-based top Kenyan runner, organizer Meyrick Jacalan of the Cebu Executive Runners Club (CERC) said they will be assigning race bib no. 1 to Losiaboi.

CEBU CITY MARATHON organizers with Cebu’s top runners (from left): Perl Jacalan, Meyrick Jacalan, Mary Grace delos Santos, Simon Losiaboi, John Pages and CERC president Jesse Taborada. (PHOTOGRAPHED BY MARLEN LIMPAG)

Losiaboi told reporters gathered in Mooon Cafe in Ayala Center Cebu yesterday that he is “not really confident” with winning the race because he is not used to the distance. He said he has no target time to finish the race.

Losiaboi said he only trained for the distance in just one month—running on the roads in Cebu and the two Mandaue-Mactan bridges and doing speed work in the Cebu City Sports Center track oval.

Continue reading Simon Losiaboi to run first 42K in Cebu City Marathon

Organizers of the Cebu City Marathon have released the rules and regulations on the event, which is just 5 days away.

Among the rules in this Sunday’s event is the prohibition on wheeled vehicles from the race route. Organizer John Pages said in his Sun.Star Cebu column that “the reason for this is simple: Safety. We want to provide runners with as wide a space as possible to run without having to step aside because of a speeding car.”

Pages advised support crew of runners to just station themselves on certain points of the route.

Continue reading Cebu City Marathon rules and regulations released

On the last day of registration for the Cebu City Marathon 2010, organizers released the final design of the souvenir shirts that will be sold during the event. Organizers, however, are still deciding on the price of the souvenir shirts. One of the organizers said it would likely be from P200 to P250.

The shirt incorporates in its design the three key landmarks of Cebu City: Magellan’s Cross, Fuente Osmeña and the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño.

Below is the final design of the souvenir shirt. Click on the image to load a larger version of the photograph.

A fun run will kick off the celebration in Cebu of Rotary Week from February 21 to 27. Rotarian and runner Kenneth Casquejo, who is organizing the race, said the fun run will start and finish in SM City Cebu.

The fun run will have a 100-meter kiddie dash, 3K Rotarian Fun Run, 7K Open for men and women, 15K open for men and women, and 15K executive division for men and women.

Registration for the race is P150, which is inclusive of a singlet as well as snacks from Jollibee after the race.

The fun run is sponsored by SM City Cebu, Summit Mineral Water, Jollibee and ABS-CBN. Organizers are still finalizing the race route. As soon as the route is finalized, CebuRunning will publish an interactive map of it.

Finishers of the 42K race during the Cebu City Marathon on January 10, 2010 will each get a beautiful mango-shaped finisher’s medal. The medals are crafted by Suarez Bros. Metal Arts Inc., an institution in metalwork in Cebu City.

In the photo below, Cebu City Marathon organizer Meyrick Jacalan, the owner of ASAP (Advertising Services and Promotions), holds the medal that he designed. It’s great work. At first glance, you can immediately connect the medal to Cebu, which takes pride in its export-quality mangoes.

Continue reading Cebu City Marathon 42K finishers to get mango-shaped medals