In for the long haul

MANILA, Philippines - His is a story of rising after each stumble and beating the odds to achieve what only three others have done: a one-man run around the world.

Dubbed as “Global Run: Takbong Alay sa Pilipino at sa Buong Mundo,” Cesar Guarin is embodying his title as the “Father of Ultramarathon in the Philippines” as he embarks on yet another leg of what he calls an ultramarathon with a mission, as the first and only Filipino global runner.

“I think I have the gift of running,” says Guarin when asked about how he developed a passion for the sport. While he was already interested in running as a child, it was in college at the University of the Philippines that he started to unearth his true potential. As part of the track and field team, Guarin says running became almost like an obsession.

Interestingly, Guarin, a Fine Arts major, related running to his art. He shares, “I asked myself, how can I be a different kind of artist? So I conceptualized the idea: bringing home the first gold medal from the Olympics would be my masterpiece.”

Soon, Guarin was training with the national team. But, as is the case in most success stories, something went wrong. As he trained for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Guarin suffered a knee injury and was not able to qualify for the team.

While trying to recuperate for the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984, Guarin realized that he could no longer sprint short distances, but he could run long distances at a slower pace. Though his plans for the Olympics were temporarily shelved, Guarin was introduced to something that would soon change his life: the ultramarathon.

“An ultramarathon is a multi-day run of more than 42 kilometers (the length of a traditional marathon),” Guarin explains. In 1983, while still trying to train for the Olympics, he embarked on his first ultramarathon from Baguio to Zamboanga, spanning some 2,251 kilometers. In 1985, having been unable to bring up his speed to qualify for the Olympics, Gaurin launched himself fully into the world of the ultramarathon, doing a Trans USA tour from New York to Santa Monica, California “as a way to get over my depression,” he says. But, beyond his frustration with his failed Olympic bid, “I realized I love running as a way of life.”

The Trans USA ultramarathon remains the most memorable for Guarin: “It was 87 days of running; 4,690 kilometers.” As he crossed the US, experiencing a chilly early spring in New York and warmer and warmer climate as he progressed toward Santa Monica, Guarin was able to do some soul-searching. From this, he realized one of the most important requirements of an ultramarathon and in life: “You have to choose one path – good or bad – and commit.”

Upon his return from the US, Guarin and his wife decided that he would take a break from the ultramarathon. After all, with his children still young at the time, he had a family to take care of. His Fine Arts skills, as well as his experience working at his father’s garment shop, were put to use when he put up his own sports apparel business, Botak (an anagram for takbo).

However, true passion can never be ignored. Guarin inevitably returned to the marathon when he was approached by Fr. Robert Reyes, known as “The Running Priest,” who told him, “I want to run across the Philippines. Can you help me?”

“It was Fr. Robert who sustained my running,” Guarin says. As he coached the priest’s marathon training, even joining him on some of the Gomburza runs, Guarin learned something new that has since become a major component of his ultramarathon: running fueled by an advocacy.

For The Running Priest, the purpose was to meet and interact with seminarians along his path, aside from many other advocacies. For Guarin, the idea of the Alay sa Pilipino at sa Buong Mundo global run was born.

Guarin’s global run spans 43,258 kilometers, bringing him to 42 countries. Originally planned for 10 legs, “it has evolved to 15,” Guarin reports. At each leg of the ultramarathon, Guarin makes it a point to meet with members of the Filipino community for fellowship, to hear their concerns, and to simply let them know that their efforts are acknowledged and appreciated back home. “I want them to know that there is this Pinoy doing a crazy run for them.”

Aside from being a tribute to Filipinos working abroad, the global run also has a “Batang Pangarap” outreach program for street children.

So far, Guarin and his support team have completed six of the legs: Trans Pilipinas (2,251 km); Trans USA (4,690 km); Trans Europe – Spain, France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy in 1992 (3,756 km); US-Canada in 2009 (1,272 km); Trans Australia in 2011 (2,053 km); and most recently, across Finland, Sweden, Norway, Scotland, Wales, and England (2,262 km).

Planning for the next leg begins as soon as the team returns from the previous run, says Guarin. The upcoming leg will be in January 2013 in the Middle East – starting in the United Arab Emirates, passing through Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and ending in Kuwait.

At the beginning of the global run, Guarin recalls, “We were on a shoestring budget. We got a few sponsorships. We made do.” In his first Trans Europe run, Guarin remembers that a sponsor suddenly did not come through with the support car that would follow him along the way. Instead, a member of his dedicated team bought a mountain bike to be able to accompany him.

“The Lord provides,” Guarin says, adding, “He is my best sponsor.” Guarin is also very thankful that, in the middle of his run around the world, more and more supporters have begun to take notice of his cause.

“We are so happy for the support of GMA-7 as our official media partner,” he says. This, he hopes, will make it easier to spread their advocacy to people all over the world.

Through the global run’s online presence, they also encourage everyone to volunteer in putting the run together – from logistics to supporting their advocacies.

Each leg holds various challenges – different climates, the very real perils of possible road accidents, and the physical well-being of the runner himself.

“Along the way, it’s really hard. Your whole body aches,” says Guarin. “When you do this every day, sometimes it’s hard to even get up in the morning. But you have to be in that level to really connect with Him,” Guarin adds on the spiritual aspect of the marathon.

Guarin points out that it is not just the physical difficulties that he worries about, but how to make each run more significant to the people.

Guarin says that he and the team anticipate a particularly challenging leg in the Middle East because of the differences not only in terrain – he will be running in the desert, with the possibility of an encounter with wild camels and other desert animals – but also the differences in culture that they will have to take into consideration. The Middle Eastern run, however, is very important because there is a large number of Filipinos working there and to be able to reach out to them is what motivates the team.

Beyond the difficulties, Guarin says that completing each leg of the marathon is truly rewarding. “It’s like meditational running. You discover yourself on the road,” he says. “In ultramarathon running, there are times when you feel one with nature and you feel the presence of the Almighty.”

The global run will take another five years to complete – in 2016, which fittingly coincides with the next Olympic games. “I will be 60 years old by then,” says Guarin, adding that he will continue running as long as he can.

In 1992, Guarin was given the honor of representing the country in the Olympics as a torch bearer. He says, “My Olympic dream is still alive… If I have the resources, I want to train marathoners who can bring home the gold.”

Whether as an Olympic hopeful, an ultramarathon runner, or a future Olympic coach, Guarin has always had a clear motivation: “It’s all about us being more united in our love for the country.”