MARCELINO Sana-oy fought toe-to-toe against fellow local Alison Tellias to crown himself the 2017 Pilipnas Akyathlon sky race in Mt. Ugo during the weekend while Sandi Menchi Abahan retained the ladies crown with ease.
Sana-oy clocked five hours, 26 minutes, and 54 seconds in the 42 kilometer out and back race which earned him a ticket for the upcoming Kota Kinabalu Skyrunning competition this year.
Tellias checked in at 5:27:00 to claim first runner-up honors while Wilna Iglesia was just four seconds behind to claim the second runner-up honors as Kristian Joergensen and Drexel Dinio completed the top five in the men's division.
“Salamat po sa Panginoon sa lakas na ibinigay sa akin, sa mga kaibigan at mga taong tumulong gaya ni sir Levi and ma’am Pen at sa Lagalag family at sa Philippine SkyRunning Association,” Sana-oy said.
Abahan meanwhile finished the 42 kilometer trail with ease clocking 5:5946 to reclaim the women’s crown where she finished the race ninth over-all.
Abahan is currently ranked as the number one Filipina skyrunner after topping the 2016 edition of the Mt. Kinabalu International Climbathon.
Mt. Ugo native Gretchen Felipe on the other hand came in second clocking in 6:38:31 while Prudence Chakas finished the course with a time of 7:41:10.
Ronald Donaol and Arlene Uyyami placed firsts in the 25 kilometer mountain run besting 83 other runners. Donaol finished with a time of 3:10:01, 17 minutes and 18 seconds ahead of second placer Jason Kevin Lipa with George Vincent Alcido placing third after tagging the line at 3:32:45.
Uyami meanwhile clocked 4:04:07 to top the distaff side edging Feliz Matilda Nepomuceno with a time of 4:17:39 with Marjori Sofla completing the top three with a time of 4:18:22.
In the 10 km road to trail run, Laurence Balanza finished the course with a time of 1:10:39 edging Jackson Limayog who clocked 1:18:54 as Darren Slade Erico finished third checking in at 1:28:28.
In the ladies side, Imee Charisma Awichan had a time of 1:41:23 to win the corwn while Jovyelle Yvonne Chu came in second after checking in at 1:47:23 with Excel Botigan placing third with 1:49:48.
Tagged as the premiere skyrunning event in the country, the event lured close to 300 runners from across the country. Sharma Buteng