Team Philippines bagged the overall championship in the recent Southeast Asian Trail Running Cup in Bontoc, Mountain Province.
Filipino bets swept the crowns in the Short Trail Men and Women and Long Trail Women categories, followed by Team Thailand when the meet was held from June 20 to 23.
Elizabeth Dangadang topped the long trail women’s 76.8-km run in 13 hours, 39 minutes and 14.5 seconds, with Angelie Cabalo in second at 14:58.00.50.
Trisha Reyes ruled the women’s short trail event(36.8 km) in 6:58.40.7, with Christabel Martes taking the silver in 7:02.09.2; and Yupa Sualee of Thailand grabbing third at 7:16.31.
Team Philippines’ gold tally also came from John Ray Onifa’s 4:56.25.8 finish in the men’s short trail, with Romnick Tongkaling and Godwin Mirar bagging the silver and bronze medals.
In the Uphill action, Yusri Nanda of Indonesia and Phitchanan Mahachot of Thailand won the gold medal for the male and female categories, with the silver going to Philippines’ John Ray Onifa and Cara Dacnis and the bronze medal to Jantaraboon Kiangchaipaiphana of Thailand and Yumei Chan of Singapore.
Vietnam’s Ngoc Anh Nguyen Thi took the gold for Mountain Classic – Senior female while Vu Duc Huy took silver as Senior-Male.
The Philippines’ Charlotte Muyco earned silver, while Samuel Bango bagged the bronze medal.
Earlier, Thai runner Jantaraboon Kiangchaipaiphana bested 19 other participants from six nations as he cleared the 77-kilometer course in 11:04.08 in the men’s long trail action.
Kiangchaipaiphana was ahead of Filipino racers Larry Apolinario (11:36.58.7) and Arnel Macarenas (11:49.53.30)
According to the organizers, each course offered spectacular views of the Bontoc landscape, starting with a symbolic crossing of the bridge at Chico River, a run through the rice fields of Samoki Village, grasslands, and the Can-eo weaving village.
Runners also passed through rice terraces carved into the mountains giving great aesthetic beauty namely, Kadchog, Guina-ang Terraces, and the massive Maligcong Rice terraces.
This biennial event saw 100 elite trail runners from the SEA region and showcased the Philippines as an emerging hub for international trail running competitions and cultural tourism.
“Hosting the Southeast Asian Trail Running Cup for the first time has been an incredible honor. The energy and talent of the athletes were truly inspiring, and it was phenomenal to witness the camaraderie that blossomed between runners from across Southeast Asia,” said Tin Ferrera, VP and secretary-general of PHILTRA and Head for the Southeast Asian Trail Running Confederation.