Participants begin the five-kilometer fun distance category with huge smiles on their faces. The run was held on Sunday, September 15, at the Cebu Safari & Adventure Park in Carmen, Cebu. CDND PHOTO / Mars G. Alison
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Another Cebu Safari Run will be staged in 2020 following the success of the 2019 race.
The 2019 race, which was held at the Cebu Safari and Adventure Park in the town of Carmen in northern Cebu, was participated by families, who joined the three-kilometer and five-kilometer fun distance categories.
Parents and children wore animal and animal-inspired costumes as they ran within the park grounds.
“It’s been a good race so far. We’ve been blessed with good weather, people have had faster times than what we were projecting because we thought it was a very challenging course,” said Quinito Moras of the CornerStone Group, the agency in-charge for the 2019 Cebu Safari Run.
“But they’ve done really well and I think this should become an annual event because we’ve gotten good feedback from those who participated,” added Moras.
Michel Lhuillier, the owner of the facility, was also present to welcome the participants of the run.
Close to a thousand individuals joined the run.
“We tried to control the numbers because we wanted to see first what was the impact on the park but now, we’re getting feedback from the keepers and the staff that there seems to be no disturbance from the animals during the run,” said Moras.
Moras said the animals are now used to visitors.
“I think the Safari Run can take double the number for next year,” said Moras.
Eduard Jarque Loop, the park’s vice president and chief operating officer, earlier assured the public that the event will pose no threat or stress to the animals in the park.
Loop previously revealed that it took some time for them to hold the run because they had to consult with the veterinarians to make sure that the event will not place undue stress on the animals.
On a daily basis, the park caters to nearly 2,000 people on weekdays and 4,000 people on weekends, said Jarque.
Moras said the 2020 Safari run is a “sure thing” after the success of the 2019 race.
“Management already said that they want to do another run but it may or may not be exactly the same race course because the Cebu Safari is very big, we have over 200 hectares here to play around with,” said Moras.
With an area that big, Moras said that next year’s Safari Run may follow the same route or half of the same route and then divert them to the other side of the property. / celr