Elizabeth Run to help storm victims

The rehabilitation of the Cebu City Medical Center was one of the main reasons for staging the 2nd Hotel Elizabeth Royal Run.

Now, organizers are including the survivors of supertyphoon “Yolanda” in the list of beneficiaries of the running event scheduled this Saturday at the The Terraces in Ayala Center Cebu.

The race, which has gathered 990 participants as of press time, was originally scheduled Nov. 10 but was moved because of the recent calamities that hit the Visayas region.

A 7.2-magnitude earthquake rocked the region on Oct. 15 that caused major damage to the CCMC. Barely a month after on Nov. 8, the Visayas was once again hit by another calamity, this time a supertyphoon that brought winds as strong as 300 kilometers per hour.

The storm left many people hungry and homeless, forcing organizers to postpone the race, which offers 21-kilometer, 10k and 5k distances.

“We are going to donate relief goods to towns in Northern Cebu that were badly damaged by the typhoon,” Hotel Elizabeth CEO Elizabeth Fernando said during yesterday’s launching at the Flora Cafe. “That’s aside from the proceeds that we will be raising for the CCMC.”

Fernando, through her “Jesus and Elizabeth Foundation” have already donated 12,000 relief packages to the typhoon survivors in Eastern Visayas in the past week. They are planning to add more for those in Northern Cebu.

“It’s not about the profit and business. In this dark time, we have to share whatever we got to our brothers and sisters who are really in dire need of help,” Fernando said.

In yesterday’s launching, Fernando handed over the P85,000 check to last year’s beneficiary, the Saint Pedro Calungsod foundation, represented by Noel Alicaya.

Also present in the gathering are general manager Edmund Valencia, resident manager Katherine Angala and race director Kenneth Casquejo.

This running event is also in-line with the third anniversary of Hotel Elizabeth.

Meanwhile, the top finishers in the 21k male and female categories, who will be named king and queen of the road, will each receive P5,000.

The 10k champions, dubbed the duke and dutchess of the road, will receive P3,000.

First placers in the 5k race, the prince and princess, will take home P1,500 each.

Registration cut-off is today at the Hotel Elizabeth lounge. The 21k registration fee is pegged at P450, 10k at P350 and 5k at P300.