Tabal, three others gain slots to Phuket International Marathon

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Cebuana Olympian Mary Joy Tabal will lead three other Cebu-based runners who will be given free slots to the Phuket International Marathon in Thailand from June 7 to 10, 2019.

The four gained spots to the Thailand race as part of the incentives for finishing in the top 3 overall in their respective categories in the 7-Eleven Run 2019 held simultaneously in Cebu, Davao and Manila last February.

Tabal, who topped the 21-kilometer female race, will be joined by Prince Joy Lee (21K Male), Azlan Pagay (32K Male) and Ruffa Sorongon (32K Female).

However, Tabal told Cebu Daily News Digital that she may not be able to join this competition as she will be competing in a race in Ottawa, Canada on May 26, 2019.  

The Southeast Asian Games gold medalist Tabal, who is currently training in Japan, said she has already informed 7-Eleven of her race schedule and is hoping that she would be granted a different race at a later date.

Sorongon and Pagay, for their part, have decided that they will be racing in the 42K distance category as there is no 32K in the Phuket marathon.

Both were given a chance to choose whether to race in 42K or 21K as the 32K wherein they won in is not a regular category in races. 

Last year, the 7-Eleven winners joined the Jeju International Tourism Marathon on Jeju Island in South Korea wherein Tabal also topped the 21K female category. /bmjo