Mary Joy Tabal looks to another trophy to her collection when she competes in this year’s SM2SM Run. (CDN FILE PHOTO)
Multi-titled Tabal says no room for complacency as she gears up for 7th SM2SM Run
A grizzled veteran in local and international races, one would assume that Olympian Mary Joy Tabal thinks every competition will be like a walk in the park.
After all, the 27-year-old runner hasn’t lost in local races since 2012.
But the multi-titled runner from Barangay Guba, Cebu City, admits that she still deals with pressure and that anxiety still sets in whenever she goes up against lesser-known opponents here.
“I think it’s a normal feeling to get nervous or jittery every before competition,” said Tabal, the first Filipina to compete in women’s marathon of the Olympics.
And as she prepares for the upcoming 7th SM2SM Run, Tabal said that pressure is once again there. But she has a valid reason to feel that way.
“This race is my first race of the year,” Tabal said. She last competed in the Milo National Marathon last December, where she won her fourth straight 42k crown.
Tabal of the Motorace Kawasaki Racing Team wants to start the year with a bang, but at the same time, she knows she should not force the issue, especially since she is coming from a long rest.
“I’ve come from a long recovery period so I will listen to my body and condition first,” she said.
But make no mistake about it, Tabal wants to stay perfect in this race, which she considers special. Tabal has joined this annual race for six straight years now and has won in every edition.
The seventh edition is slated on Feb. 19 starting and finishing at the SM City Cebu north parking area.
“It’s surely one of my favorite competitions because it creates a big impact in the Cebu running community. It is a well-organized race, and I have seen elite runners give their best here,” Tabal said. “It has also helped me in a way that I am able to compete with my fellow local runners and as well as runners from outside Cebu.”
In this year’s edition, SM Prime Holdings Inc. tapped Tabal and her trainer John Philip Dueñas to conduct a series of running clinics for free for runners who register. The clinic will be held this Saturday at the SM City Cebu covered parking area.
Other distances offered in the running event is 12k, 7k and 3k.