Unbeatable tandem

AFTER chasing Simon Losiaboi’s back in local races, Mendel Lopez finally beat the Kenyan runner, twice in a row.

A day after beating Losiaboi, in a mountain run in Balamban, Lopez made it two in a row after taking the Run to the Clouds title yesterday.

Losiaboi’s only previous loss in a local race was by disqualification.

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In the women’s division, there were no surprises, as Mary Grace delos Santos  finished first in the run that started at the Outpost restobar in Nivel hills and ended at the Zipline in Busay, Cebu City. 

It was also delos Santos’ second straight title last weekend.

Lopez clocked in at 33:14.23 to earn the top spot, while Losiaboi finished the 8-kilometer route in 35:32.60.

Carolino Jobert took the third spot with 35:33.37, Elmer Bartolo was fourth with 35.59.03 and Roland Montebon settled for the fifth spot with 37:13.05.

I was leading the pack from the very beginning but Simon was just a few steps behind me but I remained focused. It was a good thing that I am in good condition and in the last 800 meters, I led all the way to the finish line,” said Lopez who trained  in uphill running for three weeks. “Mas advantage gyud if anad na ka sa uphill running then mag flat run ka.”

Lopez, who is also the defending champion in the Lapu-Lapu run, is hoping there will be more marathons in Cebu.

“Though seldom ra gyud naa  full marathon diri Cebu, mostly mga 21k runs or shorter, but I do hope nga naa sad tay international events to attract more serious foreign runners aron mo elevate atong level of competitiveness,” said Lopez, who finished third in the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon last month.

In the women’s open, delos Santos won with a time of  40:23.21, while second placer Madelyn Carter finished it at 42:14.28. Mary Joy Tabal took the third spot with  46:36.06 and Jennifer Belocura  took fourth with 49:15.86.

Maria Milagros Tanudtanud  grabbed fifth with a time of 56:09.94.

“Ako lang gyud gi agwanta sakit sa ako tiil kay ni compete man sad ko last Saturday (in the 5th PNMl Climbathon in Balamban),” delos Santos said. “Anad naku aning uphill running kay kami sa akong coach (Sherwin Managil) mag uphill running once a week.”

Like Lopez, delos Santos is also the defending champion in Lapu-Lapu.