SHE was an aspiring athlete at the time, all of 20 years old, about to run her first Milo Marathon.
She stood in a sea of green at the starting line holding the dream of becoming a champion.
That was almost a decade ago. That athlete was five-time Milo Marathon Queen Mary Joy Tabal before she became the ambassadress of the event and the icon for the grassroots athletes.
Finding another gem in the rough and giving a break to aspiring athletes remain the goal for the 2018 Milo Marathon-Cebu Leg when it blasts off this Sunday with about 18,000 runners. The race starts in front of the Cebu Normal University and ends at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC).
“I was a dreamer before. I turned my dreams to goals then goals to reality. It won’t be easy; there are road bumps but with hard work, perseverance and discipline there’s nothing impossible,” the 29th Southeast Asian (Sea) Games gold medalist Tabal said during the event’s launch at the Cebu Grand Hotel yesterday.
The 29-year-old from Guba, Cebu City has been the face of the event having won the national finals for five straight years that was highlighted by a couple of record-breaking times. Before achieving those feats, she was a sixth placer in the women’s 5K on her first Milo Marathon in 2009.
Tabal won’t see action in the Cebu Regional Leg though since the defending champions are already guaranteed a slot in the national finals in December in Laoag City.
“It’s anybody’s game. We have strong local athletes here. They will be contending against formidable visitors,” one of the event’s organizers Ricky Ballesteros said of the 21K field.
The main focus won’t just be in the 21K as short distance runners will compete in the 10K, 5K and 3K categories. The short distance race was Tabal’s event in 2009 before she won the half-marathon in the regional leg the next year.
Sports tourism is also one of the goals of the event with the influx of out-of-town runners.
“Cebu is one of the top destinations not only in the Philippines but also in the world. The people of Cebu. The organizing of the race. The beaches. I think these are the reasons,” said Ballesteros.
He said having hosted the Milo Marathon National Finals last year was also one of the factors on the interest of out-of-town participants.
Milo’s sports executive Lester Castillo, meanwhile, announced that the marathon champions in the national finals in Laoag City will be tapped to represent the Philippines in the 30th Sea Games in Manila.
As of press time, there are more than 15,000 participants that signed up for the race. The registration will be until Friday. The organizers have allocated 1,000 slots for the 21K; 650 for the 10K; 15,000 for the 5K; and 1,500 for the 3K.
The motorists are reminded that there will be traffic rerouting during the race, which will start at 4:30 a.m. (RSC)