[News Feature] Champions Reunite at the 39th MILO Marathon Balanga Race

More than 8,000 folks participated in the 39th National MILO Marathon making it the biggest race in Balanga City.

Balanga, Philippines, 19 July 2015 – MILO Marathon regulars Noel Fabros and Mary Grace Dela Torre topped the 21K centerpiece event at the 39^th National MILO Marathon Balanga qualifying leg on Sunday. Over 8,000 runners joined the race, including Balanga City Mayor Joet Garcia who ran in the 5K category. This is the first year that the MILO Marathon came to Balanga, and Sunday’s running event established the record of the biggest race in the city, to date.

In the men’s division, 39-year-old Fabros beat his rivals with a time of 01:24:25. Harly Baguistan (01:24:30) and Gerald De Jesus (01:26:57) placed second and third place, respectively. Fabros, a security guard from Isabela who regularly runs with the Daruik Running Club, placed 4^th in the 2013 MILO Marathon National Finals.

39-year-old Noel Fabros outpaced other runners in the 39th National MILO Marathon in Balanga.

Fabros almost did not make it to the finish line. “At some point in the race, I felt cramps and I tripped. Everyone thought I was not going to make it,” shared Fabros. “I thought to myself, I can’t give up now, after all the training and everything I’ve been through. I pushed myself and thankfully, I won.”

In the distaff side, 19-year-old Dela Torre bested her counterparts with a time of 01:47:34. Vanessa Grace Reyes (02:10:59) followed in second place, while Lilibeth Castro (02:15:28) finished in third. Dela Torre, a varsity member of the Far Eastern University running team, was last year’s MILO Marathon Tarlac qualifying leg champion.

FEU varsity athlete Mary Grace Dela Torre was in top speed to be the 21K female winner of the 39th National MILO Marathon in Balanga.

Both Fabros and Dela Torre have secured their slots in the National Finals and each took home the top prize of P10,000 in cash and a trophy. Both will go head-to-head with the country’s best runners at the National Finals in Angeles on December 6, where the MILO Marathon King and Queen titles are up for grabs. This year’s King and Queen will be sent by MILO to the USA on all-expense paid trips, for a chance to run in the prestigious 2016 Boston Marathon. 

Noel Fabros and Mary Grace Dela Torre clinched the highest spot as 21K winners of the 39th National MILO Marathon in Balanga.

The National MILO Marathon is not only a breeding ground for local talents but also a program that empowers children nationwide. With the support of the Department of Education and the National MILO Marathon runners, MILO’s Help Gives Shoes advocacy will provide 10,000 underprivileged youth with brand new running shoes this year. MILO is working with DepEd in the selection of deserving public school student beneficiaries.

The race will resume in Manila (July 26), before going to Calapan (August 2), Lipa (August 9), Naga (August 16), Lucena (August 30), Iloilo (September 20), Bacolod (September 27), Tagbilaran (October 4), Cebu (October 11), General Santos (October 18), Davao (November 8), Butuan (November 15), and Cagayan De Oro (November 22). The National Finals will be held on December 6 in Angeles, Pampanga.

The 39^th National MILO Marathon is made possible by Timex, the Bayview Park Hotel Manila, ASICS and Smart, along with endorsements from the Department of Education, Philippine Sports Commission and the Philippine Olympic Committee.

For more information on MILO Philippines, log on to the official website (http://www.milo.com.ph) or the MILO Philippines Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/milo.ph). Follow MILO on Twitter (@MiloPH) and Instagram (@MiloPhilippines).

About MILO

The MILO brand is the world’s leading chocolate malt beverage that can be prepared with hot or cold milk or water. MILO also promotes participation in sports through its Summer Sports Clinics, MILO-B.E.S.T. Center Training Program, MILO Marathon, and MILO Little Olympics. The leading beverage brand believes that these contribute to the holistic development of Filipino champions in sports and in life.

About the National MILO Marathon

The National MILO Marathon is an annual marathon event open to amateur and professional runners. From its humble beginnings in 1974 as a single marathon race in Metro Manila attended by 747 participants, the National MILO Marathon has grown to be the biggest, longest, grandest national running event in the country attracting more than hundreds of thousands of runners across the country.

The National MILO Marathon has grown into a globally renowned running event having been certified by the Association of International Marathons (AIMS) and International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), and hosts foreign marathoners from Kenya, Ethiopia, and other countries across the world. The race is organized by RunRio, Inc.

About Nestle Philippines

Over a hundred years after it first started operations in the country, Nestle Philippines, Inc. (NPI) today is a robust and stable organization, proud of its role in bringing the best food and beverage throughout the stages of the Filipino consumers’ lives. The Company employs nearly 4,000 men and women nationwide, and is now among the country’s Top 8 Corporations. Driven by its mission to nurture generations of Filipino families, Nestle today produces and markets products under some of the country’s well-known brands such as NESCAFE, NIDO, MILO, NESTEA, MAGGI, BEAR BRAND, NESTLE and Purina, among others. Its product range has expanded to include coffee, milk, beverages, non-dairy creamer, food, infant nutrition, ice cream and chilled dairy, breakfast cereals, confectionery and pet care.