‘Puso’ medals for 42K finishers: Organizers unveil hanging rice-inspired medals for 4th CCM

CEBU, Philippines - Mango out, 'puso' in.

In another unique move of great cultural value showcasing a favorite dish by the Cebuanos, the organizing Cebu Executive Runners Club (CERC) will be giving away a beautifully-designed, puso (hanging rice)-inspired medal to all the 42K finishers of the 4th Cebu City Marathon (CCM) scheduled to be held on January 13.

"For the past three years, we're giving out mango-shaped medals to the finishers of the full marathon. This time, we felt that it's good to introduce another iconic figure from Cebu and we chose 'puso'. Puso plays a role in the everyday life of the Cebuanos, it is an iconic symbol of Cebu," said John Pages of CERC during the unveiling of the customized medal yesterday at Mooon Cafe in Cebu IT Park.

In the same event, Pages bared that they have already reached the cap of 1,000 participants for the 42K category. Over 800 have already registered for the 21K, while 700 have enlisted for the 5K although the number is expected to snowball as they are still opening the registration for the shortest course during the race expo on January 9-11 at the Active Zone of Ayala Center Cebu.

"We're still expecting a huge number of participants especially the student-runners. We will be assessing if we're going to open the registration for the 21K during the race expo, but for sure it's still open for 5K registrants," said Pages, who is also the president of Sportswriters Association of Cebu (SAC).

Bannered by host Philippines, footracers from 15 other nationalities are all set for action in the biggest and grandest running event in this side of the archipelago. These include United States, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Canada, Japan, France, Chinese-Taipei, Hong Kong, Kenya, Saudi Arabia and surprisingly, Afghanistan.

"What makes the CCM unique among other marathons in the country is that it is being held during the Sinulog week. The participants will enjoy a festive mood with lots of entertainment. For joining the race, they will see what the Sinulog is all about," said race director Kenneth Casquejo.

For his part, CERC president Roy Trani said everything is already in place for the highly-anticipated race that ushers in the week-long Sinulog celebration, considered the mother of all festivals in the Queen City of the South.

"We will be providing entertainment, as usual, along the race route. The water and medical stations are already in place. We want to make sure that the safety and welfare of all those who are involved in this yearly spectacle will be taken cared of," said Trani.

Aside from the festive atmosphere it offers, the CCM also dangles huge cash bounty amounting to almost P400,000 for the top finishers.

The champion in the men's and women's 42K will take home P60,000 each, while the first placers in the 21K will pocket P20,000 apiece. The top performers in the 5K battle will each receive P5,000. (FREEMAN)