OFFICIALS from the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) based in Australia will visit Cebu City this August to measure the official route of the 41st National Milo Marathon grand finals which will be held in Cebu for the first time on December 3, 2017.
The race will start and finish at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) and is expected to draw around 20,000 runners. Last year’s grand finals was held in Iloilo City.
Milo Marathon organizer Ricky Ballesteros said the AIMS officals will not only measure but also inspect the route’s distance to make sure that it adheres to the AIMS standards.
“By August AIMS will be here in Cebu together with Run Rio and PATAFA officials to measure the official route for the Milo Marathon grand finals,” said Ballesteros.
Ballesteros however, could not say the exact date of the visit.
He said that the same 21k route used in the yearly Milo Marathon Cebu leg will be used for the grand finals but will be stretched on both ends to come up with the 42-kilometer full marathon distance. Ballesteros said that they are planning to extend the route to Talamban in the north and Talisay City in the south.
Grand hosting
This early, Ballesteros and his team are already planning out a grandiose hosting for the race in line with Cebu’sreputation for coming up with award-winning hosting of big sports events.
The National Finals will start in front of the Cebu Normal University (CNU) along Osmeña Boulevard and will finish inside the CCSC. “We have to be innovative for this, we have to come up with a concept which is very Cebuano with a lot of surprises especially that this our first time to host the prestigious grand finals,” Ballesteros said.
Aside from the centerpiece 42k race, the grand finals will also feature a 21k half marathon, 3k and 5k distances.