ASSERTING their status as the top dogs in their respective categories, Joebert Elmaquin and Elizabeth Dangadang ruled the grueling men’s and women’s 80-kilometer-long trail races of the Philippine National Trail Running Championships recently in Danao City, Cebu.
Iloilo native Elmaquin, 25, negotiated the challenging course through the muddy and rolling terrain and thick foliage in a time of 10 hours, 10 minutes and 37 seconds, breaking away from the pack in the last five kilometers to finish way ahead of veteran trail runner Godwin Mirar of Bukidnon (10:19.59).
Antique’s Larry Apolinario was a distant third place (10:48.25) in the competition supported by the Danao City government, the Philippine Sports Commission, Fitbar and sanctioned by the Philippine Athletics and Track and Field Association.
Baguio City’s Elizabeth Dangadang showed her mettle on the distaff side, clocking 13:54.51 in the women’s 80K trail run, beating national team member and South Cotabato runner-up Angelie Cabalo by a mile (14:35.54) while the third entry, Emelyn Cabingas of Misamis Oriental, failed to finish the event.
“Enduring the trails, fueling the burning passion, and chasing victory are unique characteristics possessed by every Filipino. The length and roughness of trails make you stronger, preparing you for bigger challenges,” noted PSC chairman Richard Bachmann, who was the guest of honor, at the start of the races.
In the men’s 40K short trail category, Davao del Sur’s Romnick Tongkaling defended his title, holding off the challenge of Randolf Gonzales in crossing the finish line at 3:55.45 to the former’s 3:58.26. Newcomer Gabriel Mirar, 22, of Bukidnon was third (3:59.12).
On the distaff side, South Cotabato’s 22-year-old Joy Beltran was the runaway winner (5:25.01) while Bukidnon’s Noime Fernandez and Lanao del Norte’s Ann Doplon shared second place with identical times of 6:26.42.
