Running remains hot, as Tabal sizzles in 2015

MOTHER OF ALL RUNS. Close to 24,000 runners participated in last August’s Cebu leg of the Milo Marathon 2015. (CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)

Running continues to be popular among Cebuanos in 2015. And why not, when the country’s undisputed marathon queen, Mary Joy Tabal is a true blue Cebuana.

The petite 26-year old former Southwestern University (SWU) trackster from Barangay Guba, Cebu City is once again thrust in the center of the country’s running landscape all because of her unparalleled achievements.

Tabal’s most notable achievements in 2015 are winning a silver medal in the Southeast Asian Games in Singapore last June and scoring a rare grand slam in the 39th National Milo Marathon Finals last Dec. 7 in Angeles, Pampanga.

Also making her year extra special was the success of the grassroots development program she and her coach John Philip Dueñas put up in Barangay Guba which yielded encouraging results with some of their student runners, aged 6 to 12 logging podium finishes in local races.

BANNER YEAR

Tabal opened 2015 the way she ended 2014 – winning – when she claimed the 21k title of the Cebu City Marathon just days after retaining her National Milo Marathon Finals title in Manila. She then finished a strong second in the 21k race of the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon.

Tabal also competed in the prestigious Los Angeles Marathon last March where she finished 12th in her age group after organizers did not allow her to compete in the elite division due to technical reasons. She earned a slot to the LA Marathon as part of her prize for winning the Milo race.

Tabal then competed in the Singapore SEA Games as a member of the Philippine National Team and bagged a silver medal by clocking  3 hours, 4 minutes and 39 seconds behind Thailand’s Natthaya Thanaronnawat (3:03.25).

As a member of the national team, Tabal skipped joining local races but ran in the General Santos Leg of the 39th National Milo Marathon last October winning the 21k category. After that, she competed and placed fourth in the Great Eastern Women’s Run 2015 in Singapore despite not being selected by PATAFA to represent the country. She was able to join the race with the help of

Motor Ace Philippines owner Jonel Borromeo who shouldered all her expenses there.

Buoyed by Borromeo’s kindness, Tabal shattered her personal best in the 21k by clocking 1 hour, 19 minutes and 32 seconds which bettered her previous mark of 1:19.37.

The two Philippine representatives in the race placed sixth and eighth.

Tabal ended 2015 with her grand slam win in the National Milo Marathon. She’s now training her sights on the Boston Marathon next year where she hopes to meet the Rio Olympics qualifying time.

CEBU’S BIGGEST RACES

The 2015 Cebu City Marathon drew 3,400 runners including those from 12 countries. Organized by the Cebu Executive Runners Club (CERC), the race is accredited by the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF). Another race with a huge turnout was the SM2SM Run with 4,000 runners. Young, party goers had their turn in the second Color Manila Run Cebu at the South Road Properties (SRP) which draw more than 2,000 runners. It was organized by Proactiv Promotions and Coco Running.

The Philhealth Run was another success story with 3,000 participants.

The All Women’s Ultra Marathon (AWUM) meanwhile, gathered 255 hard core female runners who completed the lung-busting 50-kilometer route. It is considered the biggest all-female ultra marathon race here and organized by the Cebu Ultrarunners Club (CUC). One of the longest running races in Cebu, the University Run of the Cebu Doctors University (CDU) attracted 3,000 runners this year.

Adding excitement to Cebu’s stacked-up running scene is the super hero themed “Justice League Run” which drew more than 2,000 racers in its maiden edition.

Then the mother of all footraces in Cebu – the Cebu leg of the National Milo Marathon, had its turn last October, drawing a massive attendance of 23,713 runners where Ruffa Sorongon and Noel Tillor emerged winners. Then last November, 3,000 runners joined the first ThreeSixty Pharmacy Home Run at the Cebu Business Park grounds.