Ramos rips Guimaras 5150 field
Baguio City’s Joshua Ramos boosted his rising triathlon career with a gutsy performance, unleashing a decisive surge in the closing run to outlast fellow national team standouts and capture the Filipino Elite Category crown in the 5150 Guimaras on Sunday.
Battling through shifting weather conditions and a demanding championship course to prevail in two hours and 14 minutes over the grueling Olympic-distance test composed of a 1.5-kilometer swim, 40-km bike, and 10-km run, Ramos announced his coming as a true force in the sport.
Early morning rain greeted the athletes before the swim start, but the conditions quickly changed as the rain gave way to searing heat that persisted throughout the bike and run segments, further testing the competitors’ endurance and race strategies.
The 24-year-old Ramos posted the fastest run split of 38:50 to secure a convincing two-minute victory over Matthew Hermosa, who clocked 39:07 in the run to finish second overall in 2:16:18.
Kim Remolino, who initially set the pace after coming out of the water first, settled for third place in 2:23:26.
“It feels great. It’s always an honor to race alongside them,” said Ramos. “The course was really challenging, but I enjoyed it.”
On the women’s side, Erika Burgos raced unopposed in the Filipino Elite category, posting an impressive 2:36:30 clocking.
Aside from the trophies and the bragging rights of becoming the first 5150 Guimaras champions, Ramos and Burgos also received P10,000 each from the organizing Sunrise Events, Inc.
Meanwhile, Ines Santiago lived up to her pre-race billing as she timed 03:01:57 to dominate Ireland’s Etta-Mai Farrell (04:10:06) in women’s 45-49 division, while Nicole Del Rosario topped the 20-24 class in 03:04:40.
Other category winners in women’s division were Jaira Mae Palomo (25-29, 03:55:05); Belgium’s Lore Versyck (30-34, 03:16:12); Jee Marie Osorio (35-39, 03:37:21); April Lañas (40-44, 04:09:01); Guam’s Jennifer Pulmones (50-54, 03:36:08); and Great Britain’s Jo Cudmore (60-64, 04:44:56).
