Sabal tops Butuan Milo run

MANILA, Philippines - Elmer Sabal scored an expected romp in the Butuan regional leg of the Milo Marathon, beating Mendell Lopez and Jess Gonzaga at the Rizal Park in Butuan City yesterday.

Sabal, fourth placer in last year’s Milo finals topped by older brother Crescenciano, timed 1:12:50, over two minutes ahead Lopez as he pocketed the top purse of P10,000 and booked a berth in the national finals set Dec. 12.

Elmer thus became the third Sabal in next month’s finals, joining three-time winner Crescenciano and younger brother Gerard, who clinched a spot in the recent Gen. Santos regional leg.

Lopez clocked 1:14:56 for second while Gonzaga took third place honors in 1:15:24.

Lorhiz Echaves, a triathlete from Cebu, ruled the distaff side, but her 1:45:00 clocking fell short of the 1:35:00 women’s standard qualifying time for the Milo finals.

Lopez and Gonzaga also advanced to the finals along with 12 other Butuanon qualifiers.

More than 9,500 runners took part in the race fired by Butuan City Mayor Ferdinand Amante with Milo officials delighted with the impressive turnout after drawing 6,000 participants last year.

Meanwhile, an additional 200 pairs of shoes were donated to the students of Libertad High School as part of Milo’s sports advocacy program, increasing the number of shoes donated to 3,520.

For details on Milo run, log on to www.MILO.com.ph