City of Naga to host two triathlon races in April

From left to right, Sunrise Events Inc. general manager Princess Galura, Cebu Provincial Board Member Miguel Magpale, City of Naga Mayor Kristine Chiong, and Sun Life Financial Regional Sales manager for Visayas Mary Margaret “Marga” Bernardo gather after a press conference for the Sun Life 5150 Triathlon Cebu and Go For Gold Sunrise Sprint at the VAL 2020 Hall of the Naga City Hall. CDN Digital photo | Mars G. Alison

CITY OF NAGA, CEBU, Philippines – As part of the City of Naga’s recovery and healing from a deadly landslide last year, Mayor Kristine Chiong grabbed at the opportunity to host two triathlon events to be organized by Sunrise Events Inc. (SEI), the only group licensed to hold IronMan races in the Philippines.

The City of Naga, located 20.6 kilometers south of Cebu City, will be hosting the first ever Sun Life 5150 Triathlon Cebu and the Go For Gold Sunrise Sprint on April 28, 2019 with its Boardwalk being the center for all action.

“It is part of our recovery, healing to host this kind of event, it brings positivity and unity to the community,” said Chiong during the press conference for the races on Tuesday, March 12, 2019, at the VAL 2020 Hall of the Naga City Hall.

The press launching was also attended by SEI general manager Princess Galura, Cebu  Provincial Board Member Miguel Magpale and Sun Life Financial Regional Sales Manager for Visayas Mary Margaret “Marga” Bernardo.

Chiong added that hosting such events which promotes Naga on a global level “makes the city challenged to keep its facilities presentable” and it also “exposes the community to these kind of activities.

Galura explained that the Cebu Province, with whom they have partnered in holding the 70.3 IRONMAN Philippines here for the last seven years, have always wanted to bring SEI events to the southern part of the island. And, the City of Naga had passed the stringent requirements that is required of a local government unit to become a host venue.

“For those who doesn’t know, the 5150 is the IRONMAN’s version of the Olympic distance triathlon,” added Galura on why requirements have to be rigidly followed.

For the last seven years since 2012, SEI races such as the 70.3 IRONMAN was held in the cities of Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue, Cebu and Talisay; and in the northern part, the Xterra in Danao City and Liloan.

Celebrities

Organizers are expecting about 800 participants for the Sun Life 5150 Triathlon and 300 for the Go For Gold Sunrise Sprint.

This early, four Pros have already confirmed their participation to the event, Australia’s Sam Betten, Mitch Robbins and Dan Brown, all champion triathletes, and Guam’s Manami Iijima.

The event will also be star-studded with father and son celebrity Piolo and Iñigo Pascual sure to grace the event. Both are Sun Life endorsers.

Aside from the Pascuals, other celebrities to see action are Cebu’s very own Kim Chiu, Matteo Guidicelli and Paul Jake Castillo, Gerald Anderson, Jake Cuenca, Enchong Dee, Isabelle Daza, Solenn Heussaff and brother Erwan, Dyan Castillejo, Kim Atienza, Gretchen Fullido, Ivan Mayrina and Raffy Tima. Pascual and Dee will be teammates under Sun Life.

Because both are short distance triathlon races, they’re ideal for newbies to triathlon or those who have graduated from the IronKids races, a side event in Ironman races, or those advanced already in age but still into the sport.

The Sun Life 5150 Triathlon Cebu will have two categories, the individual—Pro, Asian Elite and Age Group, and the relay.

The Go for Gold (GFG) Sunrise Sprint, which is a much shorter distance of 750-meter swim, 20-kilometer bike and 5-kilometer run, is only open for individual participants and will have the Open and the Age Group categories.

Both are open for 15 years old and above.

For the Sun Life 5150 Triathlon, registration fee is pegged  at US$175 while the team entry fee for the relay is pegged at US$225. SEI also offers a Cebu package of US$450 for those who wants to join both the Sun Life 5150 Triathlon Cebu in April and the IRONMAN 70.3 Philippines in August. Those interested can go to http://sunlife.5150philippines.com/registration/.

As for the Go For Gold Sunrise Sprint, early bird registration fee is pegged at P4,500 (US$85). If a participant opts to register for all three GFG Sunrise Sprint races, he/she can get a discounted fee of only P12,500 (US $230). Participants can also get a discount if they opt to register as a group of six with the Five Plus One package of P22,500 (US$425). The group can also register for all three GFG Sunrise Sprint races and pay only P62,500 (US$1,150). Those interested can go to www.goforgold.sunrisesprint.com.

Registration fee inclusions are race kit, carboloading dinner, post-race meal, finisher’s shirt, finisher’s medal and timing chip.

The 5150 Triathlon will kick off with an Expo at the Basketball Covered Court of the Boardwalk on April 27, 2019. Merchandisers to display their wares are Australia Harvest, Klean Athlete, 5150 Store, Cetaphil, F2P, Intercare, 2GO Express, Vitargo and Unison. /bmjo

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/221882/city-of-naga-to-host-two-triathlon-races-in-april

Stars add glitter to Franchise Asia Philippines 2019 Int’l Conference

Three celebrities who have also gained success in the business world will be among the high-caliber panelists at Franchise Asia Philippines 2019 (FAPHL) International Conference slated March 27-28 at the SMX Convention Center – Manila.

To discuss the topic “Lights, Camera, Business: A Journey of Celebrity Entrepreneurs” are Enchong Dee, a franchisee of Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken & Sauce Bar; Rissa Mananquil-Trillo, co-founder and chief brand officer of Happy Skin; and Bea Soriano-Dee, operations director of Sunnies Studios and Sunnies Face.

“The participation of celebrities in Franchise Asia Philippines has been a tradition as we strengthen our efforts to promote entrepreneurship via franchising,” said Mr. Fred Moreno, FAPHL 2019 Marketing and Promotions Chair. “This is also our way of luring more celebrities to franchising,” added Moreno, who is also CEO of Xcess Salon and son of the late German “Kuya Germs” Moreno. He considers celebrities part of what he calls the untapped markets, people who want to try but are afraid because it is outside their comfort zone.

“When I accepted the position of chairman, that is what I wanted to do, utilize my showbiz connection. I’m contacting celebrities to help in the promotions and do interviews,” he added.

The conference is one of the four major components of the weeklong FAPHL 2019. It will feature 70 subject matter experts who will present or facilitate in 6 plenary sessions, 14 breakout sessions and 30 round table discussions. It will be attended by over 1,000 conference delegates coming from the franchising and other business sectors. Keynoting the conference are Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez and Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.

The international conference of Franchise Asia Philippines 2019 will have the theme Growing Businesses, Building Legacies to underscore the role of franchising not only in creating businesses but also in ensuring their longevity.

FAPHL 2019 will also feature a 3-day international expo, which will feature 700+ franchise and other business opportunities. Aside from homegrown franchise brands, the expo will also showcase franchise brands from Australia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, US and others.

The expo will also feature seminars and business matching activities.

The theme of the international expo is Be the Boss to highlight the role of franchising in realizing the entrepreneurial dreams of many Filipinos.

Opening the week-long event is the Certified Franchise Executive (CFE) Program on March 25 to 26, which is an internationally-recognized certification program for franchise professionals.

Franchise Asia Philippines 2019 is organized by the Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) and is co-presented by Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and PLDT Enterprise. For details, interested parties may   visit www.pfa.org.ph, www.franchiseasiaph.com  or www.facebook.com/franchiseasiaph.

https://technology.mb.com.ph/2019/03/11/stars-add-glitter-to-franchise-asia-philippines-2019-intl-conference/

5i50 in Naga City this April

THE City of Naga will host its second triathlon as the Sun Life 5i50 Triathlon Cebu and the Go For Gold (GFG) Sunrise Sprint takes place on April 28 at the city’s boardwalk.

“We want to show that there’s another venue for triathlon outside of the usual places. We looked for an area that can accommodate a number of participants with facilities to do the swim, bike and run,” said Princess Galura of Sunrise Events Inc. (SEI) on choosing the City on Naga as the venue.

The Sun Life 5i50, an Olympic distance race with 1.5-kilometer swim, 40K bike and 10K run, will have age-groupers, Asian Elite and pro participants.

City of Naga Mayor Kristine Vanessa Chiong said that holding this kind of sporting event is a positive development for a city that has a ‘vibrant community.’

“I wanted to share to you that we have a vibrant community, that’s why we have encouraged the residents of the City of Naga to engage in sports,” she said. “The city is into sports, you can see it in our oval, pool and gym facilities.”

This will be the second time that the City of Naga will host a triathlon event following the National Age Group Triathlon in December last year.

Adding spice to the event will be the presence of celebrities such as Piolo and Iñigo Pascual, Enchong Dee, Matteo Guidicelli, Gerald Anderson, Jake Cuenca, Kim Chiu, Isabelle Daza, Solenn Heussaff and brother Erwan, Drew Arellano, former Sen. Pia Cayetano and broadcasters Ivan Mayrina, Raffy Tima, Dyan Castillejo, Gretchen Fullido and Kim Atienza. (RSC)

https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1796577/Cebu/Sports/5i50-in-Naga-City-this-April