ATM CANDIDATE - The longest race of the Santa Ines Mountain Adventure Run event history did not disappoint in its degree of difficulty. The 80km race, for most runners predominantly run at nighttime, was one of Philippines’ tougher trail races of the moment. Winner Elmer Retolado needed nearly 15 hours (14h46) to cover the distance and its 4200 metres of elevation gain. Retolado was in command of the race throughout, but it got very close in the end nonetheless! New name John Ivan Zonio came within two minutes of the last Akyathlon winner at the finish line just before dawn. Maynard Encornal, also a new face, was a solid third in 15h58. A great podium with runners we may hear a lot more of this year when it’s about the ATM Championship points..

Sherlyn Fugaban was the fastest female and fourth overall, which was a bit of a surprise as Sherlyn is quite new to trail and especially long distance trail. Jinky Acejedo was similarly impressive in second and even leading at the first checkpoint. Fugaban kept the pace going, however, for the full race distance and was happy all her hard training during the covid crisis paid off. Fourth overall is an impressive long distance debut, especially considering she stayed ahead of some established male runners such as Roy Gentoleo and Aleksis Capili, even if those were not going all-in during this race. Pre-race favourite Cecile Wael struggled with stomach cramps and was never really in contention for the victory. Wael, who has been winning races left and right in the Philippines in the past couple of months, had to settle for third last Sunday.

When all was said and done, the general consensus was that the Santa Ines 80 has potential to grow into a significant Rizal mountain race. Rhea Batac of the organising team “Pace Republic” was happy and said all feedback is being taken into account to produce an even better edition next season. Who knows as an ATM Championship points race?

With special thanks to Richard Akol and Tin Salazar of LBRY Sports.

Santa Ines 80: nice wins for Retolado and Fugaban