Aspiring marathoners will have the opportunity to earn slots in the Philippine team for this year’s Southeast Asian Games when they compete in the second staging of the Manila Marathon at the SM Mall of Asia Complex on Sunday, Aug. 10.

“Ito pong race natin sa Aug. 10, napakaimportante po not only for me, but for our country, dahil ito po ay qualifying (race din) ng ating national team for the SEA Games,” said even organizer Rio Dela Cruz in Tuesday’s PSA Forum.

“Halos karamihan po sa kanila ay tatakbo, para makita nila ang kanilang performance and kung ma-hit po nila ‘yong standard ng SEA Games ay maaari po silang makuha,” he added.

The race, which drew a huge number of 19,000 participants to make it one of the biggest running events to be held in the country this year, also offers berths to the 2026 Sydney Marathon -- a recent part of the World Marathon Majors.

Sanctioned by the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association and recognized as part of the World Athletics’ rankings competition, the race will showcase members of the national team such as Christine Hallasgo, Artjoy Torregosa, Richard Salaño, and Arlan Arbois as well as entries from Japan, the US, Singapore, UK, Canada, Malaysia, China, South Korea, Kenya, France, Poland, Switzerland, among others.

The event features four races at 42km, 21km, 10km, and 5km, and offers a total of P700K in cash prizes, including P100K each for the male and female champion in the premier 42km competition.

The race will run through four cities, namely Manila, Makati, Paranaque, and Pasay, while it will also take runners through some of the iconic landmarks in the country’s capital such as the Rizal Park, Intramuros, Roxas Boulevard, and the CCP Complex.

Runners for the 42k will be the first to be flagged off at 12:00 midnight, followed by the 21k at 4:00 a.m., 10k at 5:00 a.m., and the 3k at 5:30 a.m.