Quisay, Tolentino rule 21K in Globe-Ayala Land run

MANILA, Philippines - There was a mad dash to the finish in the men’s 21K and some confusion among the top runners in the women’s side yesterday.

But in the end, it was very clear that the Run for Home: The Globe-Ayala Land City Run for Habitat for Humanity footrace served its purpose – to help fund the construction of resettlement houses in Calauan, Laguna.

Alley Quisay of the Philippine Army topped the men’s 21K race, stalking the Sabal brothers, Cresenciano and Elmer, most of the race before pouring it on in the final 2 kms and winning a very close one worth P15,000.

Quisay, former member of the national pool, crossed the finish line after an hour, 12 minutes and 46 seconds. Just five seconds behind was Cresenciano, followed by Elmer, the younger one, at 1:13:12.

“They tried to set the pace right from the start and I opted to stay behind. They’re brothers so I knew it was going to be tough,” said Quisay in Filipino as he lined up to claim his prize after the awarding ceremony.

“They knew I was there because sometimes I got close to them. I tried to be patient but when I noticed that they were slowing down I took it to myself. In the final two kilometers Elmer was gone,” he added.

Quisay caught up with Cresenciano, a two-time national champion in the Milo Marathon, with only 400 meters left, and it was a mad dash to the finish between the two members of the Army.

Quisay had the last laugh.

“It’s always been like that each time I beat him. It’s always down-to-the-wire. I guess that’s his weakness -- being in a tight race to the end,” said Quisay, who hails from Pangasinan.

In the women’s side, Aileen Tolentino of Cagayan de Oro almost paid the price for not paying too much attention on her main rivals, saying she got confused at the start that one entry got loose without her noticing.

“I got confused thinking it was me and Maricel (Maquilan) setting the pace. Little did we know that a female triathlon athlete slipped by us and almost got away with the victory,” said Tolentino in Filipino.

The triathlete turned out to be Monica Torres, whom Tolentino described as “the one with short hair and full of muscles.”

“We mistook her for a man that’s why she got away. But as we reached Ayala we were told that there’s a female runner up ahead and that she was some 400 meters ahead. We had to catch up and it was difficult,” said Tolentino.

Catch up they did, and Torres had to face and finish third behind Tolentino (1:27:06) and Maquilan (1:28:33) with her time of 1:28:49.

“She’s strong. She’s a good triathlete. But I thought she was running out of gas when we got her in the 14 kilometer mark,” said Tolentino, no longer confused as she joined the other winners.

The other winners were Alquin Bolivar (32:51) and Nhea Ann Barcena (41:33) in the 10K, Abraham Barcaso (15:59) and Liza Yambao (20:55)) in the 5K. In the men’s 3K, the top runners were Wenlie Maulas, Roger de Nolo and Patrick Gongub who had identical times of nine minutes 16 seconds. In the women’s side was Lalaine Grozco (12:47). – Abac Cordero