The race to the Grand Line turned out to be quite a challenge for the 8,000 runners who joined the first-ever One Piece Run in the country, held at SM City Fairview on October 12.
For many, it was their first time to run around the Quezon City mall.
And it was certainly a welcome challenge since the 1K, 3K, 5K, and 10K routes had a lot of uphill features.
Great practice for trail running!
Imagine more if you do it in costume.
Fans took advantage of the One Piece theme to dress as their favorite characters.
FRANKY
Mariano Guevara II was hailed best in costume for his incredible costume of Franky.
It took him and his girlfriend around two months to create the costume, especially the shoulder and arm pieces for the cyborg shipwright.
"Talagang nagpupuyat, minsan napapa-SL para magawa lang," he told One Sports. "Pero sobrang worth it kasi sobrang saya."
He likes the joy and energy of the character. Robots have always appealed to him as a Gundam collector.
And while Guevara is no stranger to running, as he is actually training for a marathon, running in Fairview was a welcome challenge.
"New route sa akin itong status sa SM Fairview," he shared. "Maganda naman, maraming uphill na kapagod."
BROOK
Another cosplayer who wowed the crowd with his energy was "Kuya Kurt Cosplay".
You couldn't miss him, he wore a giant skull headpiece as the Soul King, Brook.
He's a cosplayer through and through, using the costume for three years now.
And this was his first time to run, and finished the 1K route... even if it was a little heavy to do so.
"This is very fun and it's a warm memory also," he told One Sports. "But whenever I see people taking pictures of me, I don't care about the time anymore. I want everybody to be happy. Running around, taking pictures, taking videos and everything."
TRAFALGAR LAW
You wouldn't miss who Nabil Solaiman was cosplaying as.
He had the robes and the hand "tattoos" that were the trademark of Trafalgar Law. Even his earphone case featured the Surgeon of Death.
It was his first time to do a cosplay, ordering the costume just for the 10K run.
"Interesting naman. New experience," he shared.
"At first po, gusto kong mag-run para maging healthy and all. Then, after few months na feel ko po it didn't only change my health, na-change talagan 'yung life ko."
"Parang I feel better, more confident. And I wake up in the morning na better 'yung feeling ko po."
LUCY & CHOPPER
When the One Piece Run was first announced, Austin Lijauco and Sherylene Villegas made sure to register immediately and then planned their costumes.
"One run na ni-look forward namin for this year," Lijauco said.
He dressed up as Lucy, the gladiator persona of Monkey D. Luffy--who was his second-favorite character. It was easier to do.
Meanwhile, Villegas got the hat, the shirt, and the pants for the Straw Hat crew's reindeer-doctor, Chopper.
"Cute talaga si Chopper," she chimed.
They both ran 10K, just enjoying the experience of vibing with other runners in costume.
"Maraming uphill pero chill lang dahil super fun lang event na 'to," she added.
LUFFY
Brian Bruno didn't want to waste the opportunity of the first One Piece Run in the country as well.
He had the Luffy get-up custom-made, complete with the pirate flag and all.
And he did the run for 10 kilometers as part of his marathon training.
"Bago yung route... And it was a good run. Maraming uphill dito sa SM Fairview," he noted.
And it was totally worth it.
"And if you don't take risk, you cannot have a free world," he said, echoing Luffy.
Leading the pack in the 10K category were John Christian Balonso (39:28) and Maria Rozy Zepeda (50:04) in the race organized by RUNRIO in partnership with SM Fairview, SM Fandom, and Toei Animation.
Right behind in the men’s division are John Paul Enriquez (41:39) and Cedric Joshua Parcellano (43:13), while Marjorie Braza (51:52) and Jyra Lahay Lahay (58:27) made the top three in the women’s division.
Mark Angelo Biagtan (17:49) ruled the men’s 5K ahead of Joruss Delgado (18:24) and Joeross Simangan (18:57), while Jo Punay (22:42), Jamie Del Rosario (27:45), and Hannah Dacanay (27:50) made up the women’s top threer.
Cavin Vidal (10:53) was the fastest in the men’s 3K, followed by Zed Icarus Balanday (12:51) and Lyndon Gatasi (13:02), as Rochelle Nina Pingol (18:35) got the win in the women’s category, in front of Asti Nasayao (18:43) and Rachel Anne Balverde (18:50).
Joseph Fontamillas (5:12) got the best time in the men’s 1K, besting Arjay Dela Cruz (5:17) and Ernie Vie Estoque (6:46), while Ayra Jerica Acosta (7:05) was the fastest among the women, outrunning Francesca Dominique Apolinario (7:09) and Tiara Jerisse Medina (7:17).
Katrina Alba is a sports journalist and producer, notably with SportsCenter Philippines before taking on her current role at One Sports.
She primarily writes about basketball and volleyball, with experience covering the SEA Games, Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup.
Outside of work, her hobbies include running, swimming, pickleball, yoga, arnis, and krav maga.