MANILA, Philippines - A festive mood filled the air at Bonifacio Global City. The venue of Run United 1 was teeming with race participants, still basking in runners’ high, and spectators.
Run United 1, the first leg of RunRio Trilogy 2011, was a perfect opening salvo for both RunRio Inc. and Unilab. The organizers were overwhelmed by the clamor for race slots during the registration period and the actual turnout of runners on the race day itself. There were about 12,500 runners who registered for the run race.
“More than anything, we are very happy that the active and healthy lifestyle that we at Unilab ActiveHealth are promoting has really caught on among Filipino families. The success of Run United 1 is another step towards the realization of our goals,” says Alex Panlilio, Unilab ActiveHealth’s head.
The Unilab ActiveHealth series of events recognize that good health starts in the family. Run United 1 brought all members of the family together as it offered race categories from the 500-meter dash for kids to the 21-kilometer half marathon for adults.
For its part, Unilab also made sure that every member of the family would have something to do before and after the run. The popular Unilab ActiveHealth Village featured health and fitness-related activities for active kids, active adults, and active seniors. These included health diagnostics and fitness consultations. Nobody went out of the village empty-handed as there were a lot of games and giveaways.
“The three zones of Unilab ActiveHealth Village were really popular with the participants. The doctors and fitness experts were on hand to answer questions about fitness and health. Parents could leave their kids while they run,” adds Panlilio.
Given the record turnout and high clamor for race slots, the organizers are thinking of increasing the number of slots in the second leg of Run United later this year.
“As much as we wanted to accommodate all the runners, we had to prioritize safety and security considerations. Unilab ActiveHealth will have more events throughout the year, so we will definitely see everyone in the next runs,” says Rio dela Cruz.
Registration is ongoing for Athena Milk’s all-women’s run on March 19 at SM Mall of Asia. Categories open are 3K, 5K, and 10K. To be updated on Unilab ActiveHealth events, log on to www.unilabactivehealth.com.