Lopez will leave for Singapore tomorrow, Thursday. He will compete in the 5K and 10K events in the hopes of qualifying for the Southeast Asian Games or SEA Games. Lopez said his best 5K is 15:15 and to qualify, he will have to run at least a 14:50. He said his best 10K is 33 minutes and to qualify he has to run at least 30:59.

OFF TO SINGAPORE. Mendel Lopez (3rd from right) is competing in Singapore over the weekend with the support of the Cebu Executive Runners Club. With Lopez during the press conference in Mooon Cafe are (from left) Dr. Raymund Bontol, CERC president Roy Trani, Jesse Taborada, Kenneth Casquejo and Michelle So. CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE

Lopez said during a press conference in Mooon Cafe in Ayala Center Cebu just this noon that he is confident on qualifying for the 5K but not so much in 10K.

New CERC president Roy Trani said supporting runners is part of his group’s advocacy.

“CERC is a group formed because of running and we want to support Cebu-based runners who deserve the support of the community,” Trani said.

He said the support for Mendel’s plane fare and accommodation came from the personal funds of CERC members. Trani said he hopes to make the support of deserving Cebuano runners part of the CERC mandate next year.

“Not many runners know this but part of our CERC constitution and by-laws calls for the support of running and the support of runners,” Trani said.

Trani said he hopes Lopez will do well over the weekend and inspire other local runners.

He told CebuRunning that he is thinking of holding qualifications for elite Cebu runners so that they can choose whom to support in runs outside Cebu and the country. He said he hopes CERC can support more runners next year.

Lopez said he is very thankful of the support offered by the CERC.

They filed in, toting backpacks that are quickly disemboweled of running gear as they sat on the grass and put on running shoes in front of an eager crowd.

People gawked as they fitted for the marathon and did short runs to warm up. Look at those legs, several people said, talking animatedly about their runner’s physique: thin frame with long, lean legs.

FRONTRUNNERS. Kenyans led the Smart Subic International Marathon (SIM) from the start to take the first eight spots. Vincent Chepsiror (third from left) won the marathon with a time of 2:27:54. Click on photo to view larger image.

People were still talking about the Kenyans even after they were bused out of Remy Field to the Smart Subic International Marathon (SIM) 2009 starting line 42 kilometers away in Floridablanca, Pampanga toll gate of the Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway (SCTex). The starting gun was fired at 4:30 p.m.

A little over two hours later, large, loud speakers conveyed the news: the Kenyans are coming.

One by one, they sprinted to finish—Vincent Chepsiror coming in first at 2:27:54; Willy Rofich, 2:28:14; Daniel Koringo, 2:29:57; Alex Melly, 2:30:23; Richard Mutisya, 2:30:30; Hilary Kimurai, 2:31:51; Vincent Kipchirchir, 2:35:58; and David Kipsang, 2:37:50.

Chepsiror, 29, was so far ahead of any local runner he would still have won had he been asked to pay toll to pass the toll gates of the flat and scenic SCTex marathon route. He won $5,000 for his feat.

Hernanie Sore was the top Filipino finisher at ninth place with a time of 2:40:20. Alquin Bolivar, a native of Cagayan de Oro City, was 10th with his time of 2:40:42.

The Kenyans, running in a tight pack, led from the start. They descend on water stations like a marauding party, deftly grabbing two cups of water, one in each hand, before drinking one and pouring the other on their heads.

Bolivar said he trailed the group in the first 15 kilometers but couldn’t keep up when they increased the pace. Sore couldn’t be interviewed, he was lying on the ground, writhing in pain and immobilized by muscle cramps 10 meters away from the finish line.

Chepsiror, speaking to reporters in a voice so soft it could barely be heard over the din in the track oval, said the darkness slowed them. A long stretch of the SCTex does not have streetlight. He said the route was hilly and narrow in some place. He also said they lacked water in the last stretch of the run.

Chepsiror said his personal record (PR) is 2:18, which was set when he won the Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon in 2007.

Kenya’s Doreen Kitaka won the $5,000 top prize in the women’s event by clocking 3:01:12. The 26-year-old mother of two also won last Sunday’s Quezon City International Marathon.

Kitaka said she found the marathon difficult because it was hot at the start and, while it cooled when dusk set in, the darkness slowed her down. She said there were places where she couldn’t see anything.

Kenyan Cecilia Wangui placed second with a time of 3:22:53 while Filipina Aileen Tolentino won third place with a time of 3:29:01.

ON THEIR ROAD TO SETTING PERSONAL RECORDS. Cebu runners (from second from left) Joefranz Canizares(in blue singlet number 1026), couple Roy Trani (wearing black Adidas cap) and Dr. Rosan Trani, Dr. Alex Junia, Dr. John Clifford Aranas and Kenneth Casquejo in the early part of the Smart Subic International Marathon. The group from Cebu finished strong with several runners posting personal records in last Saturday’s full marathon.

Among those who ran Smart SIM 2009 was a group from the Cebu Executive Runners Club (CERC) who set out to post PRs and finish the marathon in less than five hours. Most did.

Kenneth Casquejo finished in 4:55, Roy and Dr. Rosan Trani finished in PRs of 4:52, John Clifford Aranas clocked 4:48 while Dr. Alex Junia posted a PR of 5:20. Other Cebuano runners who finished included JoeFranz Canizares, 5:41; Arnold Palma, 5:18; and Abby Ponce, 5:14.

Smart Sports head Patrick Gregorio said Filipinos can become great runners if they are identified and trained early. He said the country can do well in running if sponsors continue to fund programs and races.

Gregorio said running if one of the sports Smart actively supports. He said the company spent more than P2 million to sponsor the Smart SIM. He said the company has long been supporting running events and will continue to do so.

“We should also do this in Cebu,” said Gregorio, who spent five years as general manager of Waterfront Hotel in Lahug.

Kenneth Casquejo, Roy Trani and doctors Rosan Trani, Alex Junia, and John Clifford Aranas will be running a few hours from now. Casquejo is optimistic that the CERC runners can finish the full 42-kilometer race in less than five hours.

Casquejo said he is optimistic because the course is “relatively flat” and they will have no problems on the heat because they will be running late in the afternoon until the evening. He said majority of the surface they will be running on is aphalt.

Kenyans, led by last year’s champion Nelson Kirwa Rotich, are favored to win the race that will fire off at the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway. Among local runners, Allan Ballester and Bernardito Desamito are favored to do well.