ILOILO CITY– Pinamunuan nina elite runners Eric Panique at Adjene Rose Delos Santos ang 21K centrepiece events sa Iloilo leg ng 38th National MILO Marathon noong Linggo.
Ito ang pinakamalaking race sa Iloilo kung saan ay halos 15,000 runners ang sumabak bagamat masama ang panahon.
Kapwa sila tumanggap P10,000 at tropeo. Kasama ang iba pang 42K qualifiers, nasiguro ni Panique at Delos Santos ang slot sa National Finals sa Disyembre 7 sa Manila. Upang paigtingin pa ang competition at madagdagan ang malalaking insentibo sa runners, ang MILO ang tatayong isponsor sa MILO Marathon King and Queen sa taon na ito sa 2015 Tokyo Marathon sa Pebrero.
Ang nakaraang taong MILO Marathon Manila leg winner, sinunggaban ni Eric Panique ang isa pang komportableng panalo kontra sa mga kalaban kung saan ay ginamit nito ang magandang weather conditions sa kanyang advantage kung saan ay naorasan ito ng 01:14:06, at talunin ang second placer na si Roger Denolo (01:19:15) at third placer na si Roger Molinos (01:19:19).
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Ang 28-anyos na miyembro ng National Team, at nagmula sa Negros Occidental, ay nagsasanay araw-araw sa koponan sa ilalim ni coach Mario Castro’s guidance.
“Because of Typhoon Mario’s wrath in the past few days, I was worried it would still rain and the roads will be very wet. Thankfully the weather got better, although the high humidity levels made the race more challenging. But I did not let it stop me,” saad ni Panique. “There were times when I had difficulty in breathing and experienced some chest pains, but I pushed myself since I knew I can still handle it. I’m proud that my perseverance paid off.”
Samantala, humantong si Delos Santos sa neck-and-neck sa isang thrilling bout kay fellow contender Jioda Gagnao, tinalo ang huli ng isang segundo. Naiposte ni Delos Santos oras na 01:48:46, pumangalawa si Gagnao (01:48:47), at pumangatlo si Lorena Blanco (01:53:16).
Para kay Delos Santos, ang 28-anyos at native ng Quezon province, ang awareness at distribution ang pangunahing factors para makatulong sa kanya sa panalo.
“During the race, I kept track of how many kilometers I’ve already covered, and the pace that I was running at. I tried to manage my distribution and pacing throughout the entire route as best as I can,” pahayag ni Delos Santos. “We were lucky that it wasn’t rainy anymore and it wasn’t too hot either. The main challenge for me was when I felt some pains on my sides, and experienced dehydration due to the lack of sleep. I need to work on this for the National Finals.”
“We at MILO are very delighted with the impressive turnout. The threatening winds and rains of Typhoon Mario and the Habagat in the past week could did not stop our racers from enjoying their passion for running. However, the welfare and safety of our runners is of utmost importance. We closely monitored the weather conditions and we would not have put our runners’ safety on the line had it been too dangerous for the race to push through,” saad ni MILO Sports Marketing Manager Andrew Neri.
