Star shines in Sydney Marathon

Topnotch lawyer Estrella “Star” Elamparo made heads turn as she joined other Filipinos who crossed the finish line of the TCS Sydney Marathon at the Sydney Opera House in Australia on Sunday.

Elamparo, a DAILY TRIBUNE columnist, completed the 42-kilometer run in four hours, 43 minutes, and 54 seconds, emerging as one of the finishers of the prestigious annual road race. She also shone in the five-kilometer mini-marathon with a time of 29:13.

The Sydney Marathon is just one of more than 40 races that Elamparo has conquered.

Before that, the seasoned lawyer had already seen action in five world majors, including the Tokyo Marathon, London Marathon, Berlin Marathon, Chicago Marathon, and New York Marathon.

“I may not have the platform, but I have my miles. And I’ll use every one of them to carry these causes forward,” said Elamparo, who made an impact with her “Free Palestine” shirt while expressing gratitude to her running club, WeKenRun.

“Sydney, you were tough — but thank you for the solidarity.”

Aside from Elamparo, also crossing the finish line in the event that drew about 35,000 runners worldwide were former Milo Marathon winners Richard Salaño and Christine Hallasgo.

Salaño checked in at 2:26:48, while Hallasgo, a three-time Southeast Asian Games medalist, finished with the same time in the tournament ruled by Paris Olympics gold medalist Hailemaryam Kiros of Ethiopia, who dominated the men’s field with 2:06:06, and Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands, who topped the women’s category with 2:18:22.

Both Salaño and Hallasgo are using the competition as part of their preparation for the biennial meet this December in Thailand.