CEBUANA Mary Joy Tabal is up for a tough challenge when she vies for her sixth straight national women’s marathon title in the 42nd National Milo Marathon Grand Finals on Sunday in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte.
The Olympian and Southeast Asian Games gold medalist Tabal will be competing against some of the best runners in the country such as Christabel Martes, Louise Raterta, and Christine Hallasgo. Others chasing the title are Ruffa Sorongon, Stephanie Cadosale, and Cinderella Lorenzo.
In the men’s side, Joerge Andrade will also be up against a tough cast led by Eduardo “Vertek” Buenavista, Eric Panique, and Jeson Agravante.
Aside from the whopping cash prizes at stake, the winners in the 42k will have a chance to compete for the Philippines in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games that will be held in Clark, Pampanga.
The Milo King and Queen, or the winners of the 42k race, will get P150,000 each. An invisible time barrier is also set for the race, and if the King and Queen are able to break this, an extra P100,000 will be awarded. A P50,000 bonus will also be rewarded to the first runner who breaks the men’s course record of 2:18:53 of Buenavista or the women’s course record of 2:48:00 of Tabal.