TABAL
As the 40th National Milo Marathon unfolds at dawn today in Iloilo City, expect Cebuano runners to go all out to grab a piece of history in the race’s first national finals outside Luzon.
Led by three-time winner and Cebuana Olympian Mary Joy Tabal and Cebu leg champions Rafael Pescos and Ruffa Sorongon, the swift-footed trio know it will be a bruising grind when you race against the country’s best long distance runners.
The race, which will feature the centerpiece 42k full marathon and the shorter 21k, 10k, 5k and 3k distances, will start and end in front of the Iloilo Convention Center with around 20,000 runners expected to answer answer the starting gun.
Tabal, the three-time women’s champion, guns for her fourth consecutive crown against a field stacked with hungry contenders out to dethrone her.
But the diminutive, 27-year-old Cebuana is undaunted having trained for a good two months. Not to mention her legacy as the first ever Filipina Olympic marathoner when she vied in the 2016 Rio Games in Brazil.
She also said she’s in her best form. That alone, would be very bad news for her rivals.
As a Milo endorser, Tabal said she feels pressured as everyone expects her to pull off a four-peat win today. “I just want to perform my best and stay focused in the race. I’m in very good condition and completely healthy so I am confident of performing well.”
Meanwhile, Rafael Pescos, a first time national finalist who won last September’s Cebu qualifying race, vowed to do his best to land in the top 10 of the male 42k division.
The 22-year old Pescos, a native of Hinigaran, Negros Occidental dethroned Cebu Leg champion Noel Tillor to earn a ticket to the national finals. But he fell ill in the middle of his two-month training hence his modest goal.
“I surrender everything to God because honestly, I have not fully recovered. But I will try to make it to the top 10,” said Pescos.
Ruffa Sorongon, 25, of Sultan Kudarat have already collected 20 running titles in Cebu alone this year alone. But like Pescos, she also stopped training due to asthma.
Touted as Tabal’s rising rival, Sorongon, a three-time Milo finalist, said she’s nervous but “very ready to compete.”
Other noted runners in today’s race are former champions Eduardo Buenavista, Christabel Martes, Ireneo Raquin, Eric Panique, Luisa Ratera, Chris Sabal and Rafael Poliquit.