Africans dominate Energizer night run

MANILA, Philippines - More than 5,000 runners braved the rain and brightened the streets around the Bonifacio Global City as they vied in the 2011 Energizer Philippines Night Race over the weekend and brought cheers to hearing-impaired children.

The unique advocacy run, where all runners wore Energizer Headlights, created an amazing atmosphere of visual splendor and left everybody feeling a positive energy, achieving the goal of the race that coincided with night races around the world, including the US, Canada, South Africa, Argentina, Greece and Singapore.

“It was really a great experience,” said Energizer product manager Fritzie Lee.

Foreign runners from Africa dominated the premier 10 km event but their prizes were withheld by organizers pending the resolution of their status with the Bureau of Immigration.

But the event proved not about the winners but the beneficiaries of the race – the hearing-impaired children from Metro Manila who received hearing aids and Energizer Zero-Mercury batteries after the race.

“We met all expectations. We thank the runners who braved the rains and joined the race. It’s truly inspiring and we can’t wait for next year,” said Mendoza.

The race concluded a four-leg series that held stops in Davao, Dagupan and Cebu.

“In Davao, we had at least 2,500 runners, in Dagupan 2,000 and in Cebu 3,000. We were really amazed at the support we received in this particular race because more than 5,000 runners participated despite the rains. Everybody had fun,” Mendoza said.