Bruins leads int’l, local cast in Powerman Asia

CLARK, Pampanga  , Philippines  — World No. 2 Thomas Bruins of the Netherlands spearheads an elite cast of foreign and local competitors as the 2017 Powerman Philippines Asian Championship presented by Summit Natural Drinking Water unfolds today here.

Bruins, who ranks second to Belgian Seppe Odeyn in the Powerman world ranking, has set his sights on winning in the elite category race covering 10 kilometers of running, 60km of biking and another 10km of running against a field that includes countryman Matt Smith, Malaysians Ziq Junaidy and Jason Loh, Japanese Airi Sawada and another Aussie Alexandra McDougall.

“We have a powerhouse field and we expect an exciting race,” said Powerman Philippines president Owen Gan in yesterday’s informal briefing at the Red Crab restaurant.

The locals will be led by Joey delos Reyes, who is ranked eighth in the world and the highest Asian after finishing fourth in the Powerman Thailand and Indonesia early this season.

“I will do my best to improve on my last race and make our country proud,” said Delos Reyes, who is racing for Standard Insurance.

Nikko Huelgas and John Chicano, who won the triathlon gold and silver medals in Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last August, have also registered and are  expected to put up a strong challenge.

To spice up the event, celebrities Aubrey Miles, Troy Montero, Sitti Navarro, Kim Chiu, Jake Cuenca and Gerald Anderson have enlisted in the relay race.

Aside from the elite and relay, the other events on tap are Powerman short (5km run, 30km bike, 5km run) and the Powerteens set on smooth, wide roads of Clark and scenic views of NLEX and SCTEX.

Presented by Summit Natural Drinking Water, the event is backed by Cark Freeport Zone and NLex-SCTex as venue partners, Cobra Energy Drink, Unilab ActiveHealth, Garmin, Skechers Performance, Seafood Island Restaurant, Hammer Nutrition, 2XU, Dan’s Endurance, Cycles &Brew by Hubble, Starbucks Coffee, Pace Prehab and Recovery, WattUp Cycling, Hotel Stotsenberg, Lohas Hotel and Fontana Leisure Park.