Visayas State University (VSU) Grand Centennial Fun Run and Half-Marathon recorded a historic high turnout of participants, with almost 3,000 runners joining the event, held last April 21 at the VSU Upper Oval Grounds with routes encompassing nearby communities in Baybay.
Clad in their yellow and green shirts, participants of various ages from the different groups gathered early morning at the venue for a brief program before they were deployed to their respective race categories.
Dr. Edgardo E. Tulin, the Vice President of Administration and Finance, expressed his delight at the event's success during a gratitude remark.
"This is the first time ever that we've had a very large crowd—nearly 3,000 participants—and it's truly a celebration," Dr. Tulin explained.
A vibrant spectacle of runners consisting of students, alumni, faculty, and visitors eagerly awaited the starting signal of the Fun Run (3km and 5km) and the Half-Marathon (10km and 21km) categories.
The Fun Run participants joined in a race course around VSU's upper and lower campuses, providing a comfortable distance for runners of all fitness levels.
Meanwhile, the 10km Half-Marathon runners embarked on a significant increase of difficulty that stretched from VSU's grounds to Barangay Kilim. Meanwhile, runners in the 21km, the longest distance among all categories, navigated a route from VSU leading to the Baybay City Boardwalk and back.
All participants who crossed the finish line within the given time frame for their category received a medal. Additionally, the top-performing runners in each category received a separate medal and a cash prize.
Proceeds from the activity will go to the alumni outreach program in collaboration with the Institute of Human Kinetics (IHK) and the Alumni and Community Relations Office (ACRO).