Talisay resolves Cobra Ironman 70.3 issue

Mars G. Alison

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Talisay resolves Cobra Ironman 70.3 issue
Talisay City Mayor Eddie Gullas says he will not ban the international race

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Sunrise Events Inc (SEI) is pleased with Talisay City Mayor Eddie Gullas’ statement that he will not be banning Cobra Energy Drink Ironman 70.3 Philippines from passing by the South Coastal Road in his area. 

SEI was earlier saddened by the news that Talisay City no longer wants to be part of the international event, which is set to have its 6th edition on the island of Cebu on August 6.

The race starts and ends in Lapu-Lapu City where the swimming and running legs of the race happen, but the 90-kilometer bike leg takes participants from Lapu-Lapu to the cities of Mandaue, Cebu, and Talisay.  

News came out in one of the local dailies in Cebu City that Gullas allegedly wanted to revoke the permit of the organizers and no longer wants the Ironman to pass by Talisay for several reasons, according to City Disaster Risk Reduction Office Head Alvin Santillana.

First, it was supposedly because the organizers of the event, the SEI, did not comply with their promise of donating P300,000 to the Manipis Elementary School.

Secondly, Talisay City was also complaining that while they deploy personnel to man the streets and ensure the safety of the race participants, they are not getting any financial assistance from the SEI.

SEI general manager Princess Galura said they are very saddened over the turn of events as they have a very good working relationship with Talisay City.

“His (Santillana’s) claims were not accurate. Talisay City is one of the most pro-active LGUs, with representatives actively participating pro-actively in all meetings. Talisay City hosted the organizing committee meeting last July 12 where Santillana was present. He did not mention anything about the issues he shared with the press,” said Galura.

The last organizing committee meeting was hosted last July 26 by Lapu-Lapu City. Talisay representatives were present but Santillana wasn’t there.

Galura also mentioned that SEI was privy to the details of the P300,000 donation. She said it was an agreement between the Manipis Elementary School, the beneficiary, and sponsor Asia Brewery. 

SEI is the organizer of the event while Asia Brewery is the title sponsor through its lead brand Cobra.

The agreement was that every participant who will run the “Extra Mile” after the finish line will entitle the beneficiary to P1,000. Some 300 finishers ran the extra mile entitling the beneficiary to P300,000, which is the donation from the Asia Brewery.

The P300,000 check has been available for pick-up as early as April this year. It took a while to get released because Asia Brewery and Manipis Elementary School had to take care of the documentation needed for the money to be released.

In fact, the check will be delivered to the office of Mayor Gullas on Monday, July 31.

Galura said that what Santillana is doing is not only bad for the race, but also for Cebu and even for Talisay, “it is not good for everybody.” 

“What does he want us to tell the 2,800 participants who have signed up for the race happening in 8 days,” Galura asked.

As for the financial assistance, SEI and all LGUs involved have their agreement on how to go about the organization of the event, which has always been the case from the first time that Cebu has been hosting the event.

Mayor Gullas has issued a statement that he will not be banning Cobra Energy Drink Ironman 70.3 Philippines from Talisay after he received reports of the issues discussed by Santillana with the media without his knowledge.

The statement also said that Gullas is angry with Santillana as he has no right to issue those statements to the media. 

Santillana clarified that the issues were his recommendations and that only Gullas will have the final say.

SEI is grateful with Mayor Gullas’ clarification of the issues raised by Santillana and is looking forward to continue working with them in future events.

The organizer is equally grateful to all the LGUS for their support and cooperation. 

“The success of this event 6 years in-a-row is a testament that when everyone wants to work together good things happen,” said Galura. – Rappler.com

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