Barcena, Kenyan rule Rexona Adventure Race

MANILA, Philippines - Nhea Ann Barcena and Luisa Raterta made it a 1-2 Philippine finish in the women’s division while Kenyan racers took the top three awards in the men’s side in the centerpiece 21K run of the Rexona 2011 Run yesterday at the SM Mall of Asia.

Barcena finished in a time of one hour, 32 minutes, 5 seconds, beating compatriot Ratera (1:33:52) and Kenyan Peris Poywo (1:34:08).

In the men’s division, Benjamin Kipkasi topped the race with a time of 1:10:55. He was closely followed by James Tallam at 1:10:56 with Douglas Muiti finishing third at 1:13:14.

Kenyans also placed third in the 21K women’s division and first and third in the 10K men’s division.

The Kenyans again demonstrated their running skills in the 10K men’s division when Eliud Kering finished first in 32:45 and Stanley Ting third in 33:31. Filipino Alquin Bolivar spoiled the Kenyan 1-2 finish by placing second in 33:30.

The fourth leg in the RunRio Series, the Rexona Run 2011 drew close to 10,000. Aside from cash prizes, medals and bragging rights, all the finishers got the chance to win three adventure packages to the Great Wall of China, five Canon IXUS digital cameras, gift certificates and Unilever products.

The event also offered runners and non-runners alike a different level of experience courtesy of the Rexona Adventure Hub, which offered free access to a wide variety of challenging activities such as the zorb maze, free fall, wall climbing, zip line and reverse bungee.