THE THIRD time was a charm for Bogo City’s multi-titled marathoner Noel Tillor as he finally won the men’s open division of the Borneo International Marathon yesterday in Kota Kinabalu.
The 31-year-old Tillor clocked two hours and 48 minutes to emerge champion in the 42-kilometer category.
Tillor’s victory marked the first time that a Filipino won the title in the prestigious race.
It was a great comeback win for Tillor, who missed his chances in the last two editions of the event in 2014 and 2015.
Tillor, back-to-back Cebu City Marathon 42k champion, placed second in his first try in 2014, where he finished in 2:49:21 behind Kenyan John Waithaka Njiha.
His disappointment continued the following year as he was forced to stop three kilometers from the finish due to an injury , with him holding the lead for most part of the race.
In his third time, Tillor made sure that he would emerge victorious as he took the men’s open crown of the race that featured 8,500 runners.