CEBU, Philippines - The 3rd Olango Challenge set on April 24 at Tambuli Beach Club in Mactan Island will have a shorter course but it will be a tall order for the organizers and the swimmers as well.
From a cross-course challenge from Lapu-Lapu City to Hilotongan Channel to a point-to-point battle in the second edition, the third edition of the annual race will be a box-type course.
The entire course is set at 2.5 kilometers, a design patterned after that of most international open water marathons. The competitive swimmers can chose to compete in either 5K, 3K or 1.5K while the fun swimmers will tackle a total distance of five kilometers.
Over P100,000 in cash prizes will be at stake in the event plus medals for the top performers.
Those who are vying for top honors are also expected to give their all-out best to gain slots to the national team that will be fielded in at least two international competitions this year - the Asian Beach Games in Muscat ,Oman on December 8 to 16 and the Asian Open Water World Cup in Hong Kong on November 3.
The organizers led by Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) Visayas executive chairman Jose Antonio Aboitiz said that they are hoping to come up with a more successful staging of the event.
The Olango Challenge is a fund raising event for the benefit of the children of Olango. It also highlights the importance of having a clean marine environment, raises awareness on the magnitude of preventable dcrowning incidence in the Philippines and promotes open-water marathon swimming as a sport that the archipelagic Filipino should excel in.
Registration fee is pegged at P500 for the competitive swimmers and P2,000 for the fun swimmers.
The deadline for early registration is on April 9. Late registrants will pay a higher amount.
For further information, one may call Riva or Mae at 232-5270 or 232-5283 or e-mail rivagv@yahoo.com.—Caecent No-ot Magsumbol (FREEMAN NEWS)