ORGANIZERS of the annual Sinulog Fun Run is expecting just a modest number of runners to answer the starting gun on Dec. 30 at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC).
This after they decided that the pre-Sinulog race will no longer be held in January to allow them to have more time to prepare for the world famous Sinulog mardi gras.
Aside from the change in schedule, some out of town runners are also expected to miss the race with the New Year celebrations just two days away from the date of the run.
The running event will be traversing the Sinulog Mardi Gras official route.
“We had a meeting with Sinulog Foundation chief Ricky Ballesteros regarding this matter of putting the fun run this Sunday and we already anticipated that we will only be able to gather fewer participants,” said Cebu City Sports Commission’s Brando Velasquez.
Velasquez however, remains optimistic of gathering enough runners this Sunday after Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama ordered Cebu City Hall employees to join the race as part of his administration’s health and wellness program.
The Cebu City government has around 5,000 employees and race organizers are confident of drawing a thousand runners from this number.
The Sinulog Fun Run’s carousel route will pass through P. del Rosario, Imus, Gen. Maxilom Avenue, Fuente Osmeña and back to the Sports Center.
“Maybe with the help of the City Hall employees, we will be able to come up with the desired number of runners,” said Velasquez.
Registration fee is pegged at P150 with the first 100 finishers in costume to receive a Sinulog 2013 souvenir shirt.
The top three winners will get P5,000, P3,000 and P1,000 respectively both for the Men’s and Women’s categories.
Meanwhile, the runner with the best Sinulog-themed costume will take home P2,000 while P5,000 will go to the Group winner. Another P5,000 will be awarded to the winner of the special category for Cebu City Hall employees. /CORRESPONDENT DALE G. ROSAL