From left; CERC president Jesse Taborada, AIA Vitality Philippines head of health and wellness Kats Cajucom, CERC officials Meyrick Jacalan and John Pages, and SM Seaside City Cebu’s regional operations manager Anton Del Prado pose for a snap with the iconic SM Seaside Cube and the CCLEX as the backdrop during the presser of the Cebu City Marathon 2023. | By Glendale Rosal
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Not a single stone is left unturned in preparing for Sunday’s Cebu City Marathon 2023 which will start and finish at the SM Seaside City Cebu.
A total of 8,362 runners will answer the starting gun in the race which is part of the Sinulog festivities.
In a presser on Thursday, January 5, at the SM Seaside City Cebu, one of the organizers, John Pages of the Cebu Executive Runners Club (CERC) announced that it’s all systems go for the race on Sunday.
“We had the final coordination meeting earlier this week. The Philippine Navy, Philippine Coast Guard, and the PNP will help secure the route and venue on Sunday because we don’t want any untoward incidents happening,” said Pages who is also the chairman of the Cebu City Sports Commission (CCSC).
Pages was joined by fellow CERC officials Meyrick Jacalan and Jesse Taborada.
Joining them during the presser was SM Seaside City Cebu’s regional operations manager, Anton Del Prado, and AIA Vitality Philippines head of health and wellness Kats Cajucom.
Over 140 traffic enforcers and marshals, not to mention the PCG, Philippine Navy, and PNP personnel will be deployed throughout the race to ensure the safety of the runners.
Most of the marshals and personnel will be deployed within the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) which is part of the official route.
“We want to make sure to have a safe and enjoyable race for everyone,” added Pages.
Festive atmosphere
Since the Cebu City Marathon is part of the activities of the Sinulog Festival, CERC officials promised the same festive atmosphere the participants are used to in previous editions.
To add more excitement, the “Best Hydration Station” and “Best in Costume”competitions will also be featured.
Taborada revealed that there will be tribal bands, music, and Sinulog dancers lining up the route to cheer the runners.
The running event features a full marathon (42 kilometers), 21k, 10k, and 5k distances with over P360,000 prize money at stake.
Convenient venue
SM Seaside City Cebu, one of the sought-after sports venues in the city promised a convenient venue for everyone from spectators to runners.
Del Prado said that they will provide comfort rooms inside the mall for the entire event. They will also open up their basement parking and open-air parking areas for the participants.
“It’s a prestigious marathon. We want to make it convenient for everyone. We will allow basement parking for participants. 16 tenants will open before the gun start. Tenants, coffee shops, and fast food chains to open up. Comfort rooms and parking for everyone are available on race day,” said Del Prado.
All-out support
For her part, Cajucom said that AIA Vitality and CERC’s partnership allows them to return to Cebu’s active sports scene.
It can be recalled that AIA Vitality served as the Ironman 70.3 Philippines’ presentor last year in the race held at the Mactan Newtown.
This time, Cajucom and AIA Vitality return to Cebu as presentor of the Cebu City Marathon.
“It’s good to be back here in Cebu. This time we’re happy to be back as part of the CCM. Cebu is one of the cities where AIA operates. We’re very much grateful to be part of CCM because we can connect to the Cebuanos,” said Cajucom.
Before the presser, CERC officially opened the race expo at the SM Seaside City Cebu’s mountain wing area. Runners started claiming their race kits as of this writing, while pre-race activities are happening at the same time.
ALSO READ:
CCLEX part of Cebu Marathon 2023 route
Cebu Marathon: Record number of participants for 2023 edition
Cebu Marathon 2023 attracts 8,632 runners