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Villafria to hold fundraising for Japan trip
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Posted on Apr 02 2008
Roadrunner Ronald Villafria will be holding a fundraising event next month to help finance his scheduled trip to Tokyo, Japan, where he will compete in the 2008 Mt. Fuji Marathon of Fuji Tozan race on July 25.
Villafria said he is planning to hold a 5-kilometer fun run tentatively set on May 24, Saturday, to defray the cost of his ticket for his Japan trip.
He added he would check with the Marianas Visitors Authority on the date of the Ayuda Fun Run in order not to conflict with the schedule of his fundraising activity.
The Coco’s Restaurant employee said he already talked to Northern Marianas Athletics secretary general Robin Sapong to help him in recording the times of the participants, while he would also seek assistance from other businesses to provide prizes.
Aside from the businesses and NMA, Villafria will also ask the help of the Northern Mariana Islands Triathlon Federation and its president Russ Quinn.
He said he expects all running enthusiasts on Saipan, who regularly join various races on the island, and NMA athletes will also take part in his five-kilometer fun run.
The Mt. Fuji Marathon or Fuji Tozan Race is composed of two legs, a 15-kilometer race to the fifth station of the mountain and a 21-km race all the way to the top. The final six-kilometers of the race is also a trail run.
Villafria said lawyer and perennial contender Steven Pixley would join him in the Mt. Fuji Marathon, while inaugural 12-kilometer Marianas Coffee Trail Run at Mt. Tapochao winner Fujio Miyachi will also compete for the third time in the race.
Registration for the Mt. Fuji race is limited to only 6,000 participants and sign up is a first-come, first-served basis. Villafria said Pixley would take care of their registration.
Villafria previously led an All-Filipino team in winning the relay event of the 19th Tagaman Triathlon on March 15 where he ran the 15-km course in 58 minutes and 33 seconds and beat Miyachi in the 12-km trail run of the 7th XTERRA Saipan Championships with a time of 1:01:12.
He also placed third in the 10-km event of the 3rd Annual Saipan Marathon in January (41:43.22) and ran solo in the 13.7-mile Christmas Island Relay last year with at time 1:48:50.
