28th Araw ng Kagitingan Ultra-Marathon

The 28th staging of the oldest and longest-running relay ultra-marathon which pay tribute to World War II Veterans, will retrace anew the  infamous 1942 Death March  Trail on April 8 and 9, 2013.

This year's  Araw ng Kagitingan Ultra-Marathon, a non-competitive 114-kilometer relay-run, will  start at the  event’s  Kilometer Post 0 Marker in Mariveles, Bataan.

A simple program with Mayor Jesse Concepcion and the living War Heroes, headed by Post Commander Peregrino Divinagracia, will be held before the start of the two day run.

Before sending the runners out to the two-day run, the traditional "Walk with the Heroes" will be held with Divinagracia transferring the symbolic torch to San Fernando Runners Unlimited, Inc. (SAFER RUN) president Eduardo Paez,  the event founding organizer.


The historic retracing was initiated by Paez, a retired BFAR info Office in Central Luzon,  after the EDSA People Power Revolution in 1986. The first edition of the annual event began with only 28 runners from SAFER RUN.

This year, Runners from SAFER RUN, Philippine Army Special Services Unit, Caloocan North Runners Club, Sta. Rosa City Runners, Tarlac City Team and Runners Plus, will   traverse a city and nine towns of Bataan, before spending the night at the Lubao, Pampanga Gym, where the local government is expected to roll the traditional red carpet for the modern-day marchers.

The run  will cover  the road to Guagua before reaching the town of Bacolor, where the relay-runners  will do their  annual Visita Iglesia at the famous San Guillermo Church.

This yearly event of saluting the heroism of the Bataan patriots is supported by MILO, UNILAB Active Health, MAYO Productions, Inc., EXCELLENT Noodles, POCARI SWEAT, PAMPANGA'S BEST, ALICE  Bakery & Grocery,  SPEED Detergent, WESCOR Transformer, F.M. Ringor Engineering, Hotel Victoria de San Fernando, BFAR Gitnang Luzon, PNP RO III, Isport BOTAK, PCSO and others.

The Bataan-Pampanga phase of the event will end at Brgy. Sto. Nino in the City of San Fernando, where the  Death March Shrine  Km. Post 102 marker can be found. There, a program to commemorate the heroism of those who survived and perished in the infamous march will be held, including the lighting of the Apoy ng Katapangan urn.

After the  rites, the runners will board  their back-up vehicles for a trip to Sto. Domingo, Capas for the final 12-kilometer route to Capas National Shrine (Camp O'Donnell), where the annual "Salute to our War Heroes" run will end.

For more information about this yearly run, contact Ed Paez at 410-5410,  0915-4711443 and 0949-9499004.