Runners start the year full of color at the Color Manila Run

Runners started 2013 with an explosion of colors last Sunday at the Color Manila Run held in Bonifacio Global City.

Inspired by the Indian spring festival of Holi, the race put a twist on the usual weekend fun runs. For the first time in the country, runners were showered with colored powder at different stations throughout the route. A color festival was held at the finish line, where runners threw handfuls of the powder into the air and at one another.

Thousands of runners attended, many of them tweet-happy enough to make the hashtag #colormanilarun trend briefly on Twitter following the morning’s run.

The clamor for novelty from the running community as well as the desire to attract new runners motivated race organizer Proactive Sports and shoe brand KangaROOS to hold the race. Color Manila Run’s different distances were designed to attract all kinds of runners: the 1.5-, 3-, and 5-kilometer distances for those new to the sport, and the 10-kilometer distance for seasoned runners looking for a novel way to start their sporting year.

Strictly speaking, this was not a race; there were no winners based on who crossed the finish line first. Instead, awards were given for fun categories, such as Most Colorful Runner. Because of this, participants could enjoy each of the color stations at their leisure: the Pink Mosh Pit, Magic Yellow, the Ocean Blue area, the Evo-Green spot, and the Fiery Purple Stop-over.

At the stations, one could dodge getting powdered, or embrace getting their white Color Manila Run shirt covered in the colored dust, which was flour mixed with food coloring. Some runners stopped to grab powder to throw playfully at friends, or lay down and rolled around in it.

After crossing the finish line, participants were given finisher medals as well as color packets for the finish line color festival. At a signal, they opened their color packets and threw powder up in the air for a visual spectacle that set cameras a-clicking.

Participants sipped on Jamba Juice and Gatorade after their run, while Pascual Laboratories provided medicine and product samples to fill their loot bags. 10-kilometer runners also received bottles of Lightwater. Photobooths allowed families and friends to capture the colorful moment in souvenir pictures.

This won’t be the last time a run will paint BGC in color; a night edition with glow-in-the-dark powder and LED lights is planned for February.

Color Manila Run was held for the benefit of Republikha, a non-stock, non profit organization that aims to empower the next generation through music and education, and Hop-E, a foundation moving towards helping eradicate poverty through the four elements, Education, Empowerment, Employment, and Events.