TABAL
EVEN after a successful year in marathon, Cebuana Olympian Mary Joy Tabal is still looking forward to improving her skills next year.
The four-peat champion of the 40th National Milo Marathon and the first Filipina to compete in the women’s marathon of the Olympics said she will be training abroad next year in preparation for bigger races ahead such as the Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) in Malaysia and the Ottawa Marathon in Canada.
The 27-year-old Tabal team, Motor Ace-Kawasaki Racing, plans to send her to train in Kenya, Japan or Italy.
“I prefer Kenya so that I can try running in high altitude courses. But it depends on my sponsors from Motor Ace Philippines,” Tabal, who hails from Barangay Guba, Cebu City, said. “I hope that I can also return in Japan to prepare for the SEAG and to prepare also for the Ottawa Marathon which I will be competing in again as part of my winnings in the Milo Marathon.”
It can be recalled that Tabal trained for months in Japan to prepare for the recent Olympics in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.
It has been a fruitful year for Tabal, having been able to join the Boston Marathon, the Ottawa Marathon in Canada, the Rio Olympics and winning a four-peat in the Milo Marathon. For now, she plans to take a short break before going back into action next year.
“I can finally rest and plan for next year because I achieved all of my goals this year. I could not ask for more this year, I’m looking forward to join big races next year.”