Alcala, Santiago triumph in the rain

SUBIC—It rained and rained but the downpour hardly stopped nor cooled down the fearless triathletes, who swam, biked and ran the IRONMAN 70.3 Subic Bay with great resolve in exacting conditions here on Sunday. John Dedeus Alcala withstood the strong waves and windy conditions in the bike then pushed himself with all the strength he could muster in the closing run stage to pound out the win in 4:43:45 while Ines Santiago dominated the opening swim and cruised to victory in 5:35:59 in her side of the 1.9km swim, 90km bike and 21km run race at the Subic Bay Boardwalk. With a pack of bidders from 33 countries still disputing the centerpiece Century Tuna IRONMAN Philippines crowns at press time, Alcala and Santiago took the spotlight in the half-triathlon, including $1,000 each, in damp and cold conditions.

Alcala put up the kind of finish he flaunted in stealing the show—but in stifling heat (4:32:20)—in the inaugural IRONMAN 70.3 Puerto Princesa in Palawan last November, racing at his own pace in the swim (39:19) and bike (2:33:21) before pouring it out with a best 1:27:05 clocking in the run leg.

Alcala barely held off young Irienold Reig, Jr., who splashed his way to the early lead in 0:31:27 (swim), held sway with a 2:40:07 clocking in bike but failed to match Alcala’s strong finish and big strides, finishing in 1:28:29 for an overall time of 4:44:46.

“It was challenging, especially in the swim and bike because the waves were really rough and when I was on the bike, it was windy and I had to grip on my dropbars so I won’t be affected. But when it was my turn to run, it was okay. I mean, this really couldn’t be called the IRONMAN if isn’t challenging,” said Alcala.

“The turning point I think was on the last 15k. There was someone behind me the whole time and I gave it my all in the last 1k even if I collapsed at the finish,” he added.

The tough swim conditions actually forced the withdrawal of some bidders but Alcala and the rest endured and survived one of the toughest tests in endurance racing.

“I always give my best, to show my family, my sponsors that I gave it my all because what they have contributed is what keeps me going. And this is for my future as well,” said Alcala.

August Benedicto, winner of the IRONMAN 70.3 Cebu last year, wound up third in 4:48:28 with leg clockings of 39:02 (swim)-2:30:40 (bike)-1:34:21 (run), while Kenneth Bonda and Satar Salem took the next two spots in 4:48:33 (37:59-2:33:261:32:39) and 4:55:33 (34:03-2:32:151:42:37), respectively.

GOOD chemistry is often achieved through a combi nation of factors such as talent, understanding of the characters, shared ex periences, trust, and effective direction.

In GMA’s latest offering, LUV IS: Love at First Read, premiering today at 5:40, lead stars Mavy Legaspi and Ky line Alcantara exhibit intangible con nection and rapport on screen.

"They work so comfortably with each other. On and off camera, they cre ate excitement. Sometimes you don't even know if it's real or if they are still in character," said series director Marc Sicat dela Cruz about Mavy and Kyline's close relationship on set.