grassroot program

After winning the 2014 SBR.ph Awards Race of the Year (below 600), the Bataan International Triathlon (Bi3) comes back with the promise of an even bigger and better eco-heritage triathlon festival.

The homegrown race that boasts of being truly Filipino, is set once again in the picturesque Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar in Bagac, Bataan on November 28-29, 2015, where participants will race past Filipino heritage homes and buildings. It features unique race distances – the Largo (1.5km swim-55km bike-11km run) and Rapido (750m swim-30km bike-5.5km run) – in which participants have the option to race individually in the Solo category, as buddies in the Amigo category or as part of a Relay team (only available in Largo). Aspiring young athletes are also expected to make waves in the Junior Aquathlon events where kids from 6 to 16 years old will race in the swim-run event. Participants in the 6 to 8 and 9 to 12 age groups can participate individually or in the unique parent-child category where they can race alongside their parent. Those in the 13 to 16 age group will participate as individuals.

SWIM COURSE

The Bataan International Triathlon starts off with a swim in the calm and clear waters of the West Philippine Sea right on the shoreline of Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar.

BIKE COURSE

From transition, the athletes make their way towards the national road, turning left past the Filipino-Japanese Friendship Tower and towards the municipality of Morong. On the bike course, the cyclists navigate through hilly and winding roads as they go past the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant and down into Morong proper before making a U-Turn in Sabang and ride back towards Las Casas where they will change into their running gear.

RUN COURSE

The run course takes athletes past rice fields and scenic ocean views as they run on the roads leading to Mt. Mariveles, conquering some hills along the way. Athletes then turn back towards Las Casas where they will run past its heritage homes before crossing the bridge towards the finish line where a fiesta awaits them.

The Largo and Rapido categories will be held on a Saturday (November 28), while the Junior Aquathlon is set on Sunday (November 29), giving the participants more time to enjoy the venue with families and friends after the race. Bi3 promises a weekend full of activities, which includes heritage tours, cultural shows, a post-race fiesta and a whole lot more.

MIRINDA CARFRAE TO RACE IN BATAAN INTERNATIONAL TRIATHLON 2015

F&F International Events Group, Inc. shook the Philippine multisport scene as it revealed on Monday, September 7 that 3-time Ironman World Champion Mirinda “Rinny” Carfrae is racing at the Bataan International Triathlon this year. It will be Rinny’s first race in the Philippines and it is the first time ever that a reigning women’s Ironman World Champion will be racing in the Philippines. As Bi3 does not have a separate professionals division, Rinny will share the starting line with other pro athletes, Filipino elites, and age groupers. This gives Bi3 participants a chance to race alongside their idol.

Rinny’s triathlon career started when she represented Australia at the ITU Triathlon World Championships from 2001-2005, where she bagged silver medals in the years 2002 and 2003. In 2009, she landed in second place in her first ever appearance at the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii – considered the most prestigious triathlon event in the world. Since then Rinny has landed in the podium in all her appeareances at the World Championships. In 2010, she dominated the women’s field and took first place, repeating this feat in 2013 and 2014. She owns the Ironman World Championship women’s course record at 8:52:13 and women’s marathon run record with a time of 2:50:38.

On top of her athletic athletic career, Rinny is also involved in chartable initiatives such as the programs of World Bicycle Relief, which aim to provide bicycles to residents of rural Africa and connect them with education, healthcare and economic opportunites. She brings this same charitable heart to the Philippines as she will help launch the Batang Tri Grassroots Program, a program that aims to fight poverty in Phlippines and Asia through multisport.

BATANG TRI GRASSROOTS PROGRAM

The Batang Tri Grassroots Program is an initiative by CEO and President of F&F International Events Group, Inc. and restaurateur Raymund Magdaluyo. It started as a small-scale CSR of the Blackbeard’s Seafood Island Group in partnership with coach Jojo Macalintal, wherein part of the proceeds from the sales of Jomac Boodle, a meal created by coach Jomac, are used in buying bicycles for young individuals that want to enter the world of multisports but do not have the capacity to do so.

This year, Batang Tri Grassroots Program is set to expand to new horizons as coach Melvin Fausto of the Triathlon Association of the Philippines and Carlos De Guzman of SwimBikeRun.ph join Raymund Magdaluyo and Jojo Macalintal to combat poverty through the help of multisports. The renewed program aims to acquire more bicycles and funds for different training programs for deserving young individuals.

One hundred special slots for the Bataan International Triathlon will be open to the public wherein a part of the proceeds will directly go to the Batang Tri Grassroots Program.