Love blooms at the CCLEX; marriage proposal draws ‘kilig’ online

AND SHE SAID YES! Every time they will see the CCLEX in the future, Jesanine and Mikel will always remember this special moment in their lives. | photo by John Velez

CEBU CITY, Philippines — At about kilometer 20 of their 24-kilometer run in last Sunday’s Cebu City Marathon, Mikel Hermosada and Jesanine Bandang stopped to have their photos taken by photographer John Velez. They were in the middle of the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway, which is part of the marathon route.

The interaction was caught on video by runner Clinton Cabañero and posted on a viral Facebook Reels. Clinton was trying to set the stage for what would happen next, instructing the couple where to face. But Jesanine told him to wait and after getting their initial photos taken by John, Clinton again gave them instructions on their pose.

Mikel then told Jesanine to face the sea and after she turned, went on his knee and held a box containing their engagement ring.

“Oh wow, sana all!” a runner shouted just as Jesanine, visibly surprised, turned to face a kneeling Mikel, who then proposed to her.

Jesanine said “yes” to the cheers of runners who witnessed the proposal. The two then embraced each other and kissed before continuing the run at the CCLEX. Mikel then thanked John as they started running to finish the race.

“Hapit na ra ba ang bus,” John jokingly told them. (The bus is near). The bus he referred to was the one that took runners who failed to make the cutoff and would not be allowed to complete the event, to the finish line. 

Mikel’s successful proposal was one of the sidelights of Sunday’s Cebu Marathon 2024. But it was planned much earlier – during the TWM triathlon in Bantayan Island in November when Mikel served as one of the support crew of a friend.

Jesanine proudly shows the engagement ring given to her by her boyfriend of two years, Mikel who proposed during the Cebu City Marathon 2024 last Sunday.  | photo by John Velez

Jesanine was introduced to Mikel by a friend in March 2020. She became his girlfriend in July of that year. Mikel, 27, handles admin and finance in his family’s accounting firm Hermosada & Co. Jesanine, 30, recently resigned from a BPO company.

Key to the success was Mikel’s friend Clinton, a fast runner who didn’t mind pacing them at a slower run so that Mikel will not be “laspag” or beaten up from exhaustion when he made the proposal at the CCLEX. Clinton also carried the box with the ring for Mikel.

There are still no definite plans for the wedding as the couple enjoys their engagement, which is now Facebook official as can be seen in their respective bios on the platform. Jesanine is still “on cloud nine.”

“Ang reason jud ngano didto ko mag propose para ma remind namo amo relationship everytime mo agi or makit-an namo ang bridge,” Mikel said in an interview. (The reason I proposed at the CCLEX is to remind ourselves about our relationship every time we see the bridge.)

The CCLEX, Cebu’s newest tourism and sports icon, stood as witness to this couple’s enduring love.

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