Kenyans continue dominance in local races

The Kenyan invasion continues in the local running circuit as the African country's famed runners stamped their class anew on Saturday, dominating the ING 20-A Race to Build 20 Homes at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. Fredrick Mathiu and compatriot Irine Kitchumba won the men's and women's categories of the 20-kilometer races, while Daniel Koringo and Susan Jemutai bagged the 10K competitions in the ING-organized event that celebrated its 20th year in the country. Mathiu (1 hour and 8.44 minutes) led an all-Kenyan podium finish with James Taulan (1:08:57) and Douglas Mrui (1:10.18), while Kitchumba (1:24.49) was followed at the finish line by Filipino runners Miscella Gilbuena (1:32.31) and Genevive Dela Pena (1:44.08). The race raised P1.8 million that will be used to build 20 houses in partnership with Habitat for Humanity in the 2nd ING Village in Calauan, Laguna as part of the "Bayanihan sa Southville 7" Community. "It was a very nice day to run, although still humid, but the race was very organized, and there were enough water stations along the route," said Mathiu, who placed seventh in the full marathon race of the 2nd Quezon City International Marathon (QCIM) a week ago. Mathiu admitted that he was not in his best shape after the QCIM marathon, finishing way below his 1:05.12 personal best clocking in the 20K race. "No time to rest, my muscles were still tired," added Mathiu, who said that Kenyans are coming to Asia to compete since they found out about the numerous opportunities for racing. "We discovered that there are races in the region and we tried to put the races in our calendar," said Mathiu. "This is part of my socialization, I love to meet new friends during competitions." Koringo (30.20 minutes), who finished 13th in the 42k event of the QCIM, relegated Filipino runner Rene Herrera (30.22) and compatriot Willy Rotich to second and third place finishes, respectively. Jemutai, who ruled the 21K event of the 2nd QCIM, was in her fearsome form ruling the 10K event with a time of 34.38 minutes, and again relegating the Filipino runners to second and third place finishes. Mercedita Fetalvero (35:05) salvaged second place while Mirasol Abad (37:59) came in third. Organizers did not release the 5K results due to an on-going investigation after several runners got lost during the race and failed to complete the distance. In the 3K category, Ben Alejandro (9.32 minutes), Wielie Manlas (9.33) and Kimbert Saromento (9.41) gained the top three spots in the men's division, while Nhea Ann Barcena (11.29) Cristin Delfin (12.01) and Mary Grace Dela Torre (12.41) duplicated the feat in the women's category. – Perry Legaspi/JVP/KY, GMANews.TV