Stricter rules to be applied in Cebu leg of Milo Marathon

Expect stricter rules in this year’s Cebu leg of the Milo National Marathon.

Ricky Ballesteros, organizer of the Cebu qualifying race, said stringent measures will be applied to make sure that a participant is physically fit to join the October 11 race.

This developed after tragedy struck last Sunday’s Manila qualifying leg where a male participant in the 21-kilometer category collapsed during the race and died a few days later.

The fatality was identified as Milton Reyes of Navotas City.

Reyes, 28, collapsed about 200 meters from the finish line. He died in a hospital last Tuesday.

The tragic news was confirmed by Ballesteros though he was not able to provide information as to the cause of death.

Around 35,000 runners joined the race which featured 5k, 10k and 21k distances. It started and ended at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City.

According to Ballesteros, what happened was was out of the organizers’ control.

Ballesteros advised the participants in the Cebu leg to submit a medical certificate two months prior to the race or they won’t be enlisted during the registration.

“Sometimes, a lot of runners thought they are 100 percent healthy, but they did not know that there’s something ill in their body, so they have to make sure and re-check their condition before they join a race like this because they are risking their own safety and health,” Ballesteros told CDN.

Ballesteros is expecting some  25,000 runners to join in the Cebu leg which will start and finish at the Cebu City Sports Center.

Ballesteros said the Manila leg organizers headed by Run Rio of the renowned running organizer and coach Rio Dela Cruz were not remiss in their duty to ensure the safety of the runners.

Just like in Cebu, organizers in Manila put up ample medical stations and deployed ambulances and medical teams to look after the runners.

Organizers immediately got in touch with Reyes’ family and provided the necessary assistance.

Dela Cruz and his team followed international standards since the running event is certified by the Association of International Marathons (AIMS) and International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).