The first FIlipina marathoner who ran in the Olympics wound up 124th out of the 133 finishers.
With a time of three hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, Mary Joy Tabal was 38 minutes behind gold medalist Jemima Jelagat Sumgong of Kenya.
Still, Tabal was happy to have finished the race. There were 23 Olympians who failed to do so.
27-year-old Tabal had originally targeted a time faster than her national record of 2:43.47.
Unfortunately, the scorching Rio heat proved to be too much for the athlete.
“Sinabi ko nga kay coach Philip (Dueñas), ang sakit na talaga, ang hirap na. Pero naisip ko ang mga nagdarasal para makatapos ako,” she said in an interview published in the Inquirer.
(I was telling coach Philip that the pain was already unbearable, but I was thinking about the people who were praying for me,)
She was only able to finish the race because of sheer determination. Even if she already hit her runner’s wall sometime in the second half of the 42.195 km race, she kept on pushing.
“I have never discontinued a race in my life because of pain or exhaustion, and not now, because this is the Olympics,” she said.
Tabal said that the weather suddenly turned very hot 30 minutes into the race. She found her body desperate for more air and liquid.
Her legs had gone numb, but her mind told her to keep on moving.
“I didn’t want to look at the runners who fell on the road and just stopped running for fear I might join them. I told myself that I’d finish the race even if I had to walk. I’m glad I didn’t have to,” Tabal shared.
So what did she learn after running with some of the finest athletes in the world? That she still has a long way to go.
“I need to learn how to adjust to everything like the weather, the other competitors, all the aspects of preparation,” said Tabal. “This is an experience that will help me improve as an athlete.”
Perhaps we’ll again see her in Tokyo 2020?
