DAVAO’S ELIAS TABAC RULES SPARTAN ELITE

National Pilipinas Obstacle Sports Federation athlete Elias Tabac added to his growing collection the overall Beast Elite championship title that he won in the recently-concluded Spartan 20 SEA Regional Series held at Vermosa in Imus, Cavite.

He timed two hours and 53 seconds to race past 41 other rivals.

The 29-year-old ace, who is based in Davao del Norte, raced past rivals American Gabe Heck of New York and fellow Filipino Andrico Mahilum who finished second and third, respectively.

Heck clocked at 2:05:25 while Mahilum checked in at 2:06:58 in the 21K obstacle race.

Filipinos Sandi Menchi Abahan (2:29:53), Marites Nocyao (2:38:44), and Silamie Gutang (2:43:11) grabbed the first three spots in the women’s event.

It was a tough race, according to Tabac, an employee of the Provincial Government of Davao del Norte, and he’s grateful that he survived it with flying colors.

Elias Tabac recap

Tabac, the 2021 champion of the World’s Highest Obstacle Course Race (OCR) at the crater of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, East Africa where he earned the Guinness Book of World Record, said in a Facebook interview, “Ang hirap ng rota. Grabe, gihatag jud nako akong best, Ma’am. AWala ko mag-expect nga mudaog. Lisod kaayo 21K sa basakan unya 32 obstacles, grabe kalapok (The route was so hard. I gave my best, Ma’am. I didn’t expect to win. The route was hard. It was very difficult, 21K in the wetlands then 32 obstacles, very muddy).”

He completed the Beast Elite’s 32 obstacles that included the overwall, O.U.T., 7′ wall, hurdles, inverted wall, bucket carry, 6′ wall, barred wire crawl, spear throw, Atlas carry, vertical cargo, Herry Can Carry, beater, Tyrolean traverse, 8′ wall, armer, tire flip, monkey bars, bender, sandbag carry, stairway to Sparta, Olympus, A-frame cargo, plate drag, Z Wall, Twister, Multi Rig, Hercules Hoist, rope climb, slip wall, and fire jump.

But the Gerry can carry, according to him, was the toughest as he had to carry two gallons of mineral water in a 600-meter distance just using his bare hands.

Hercules Hoist

The Hercules Hoist, too, also challenged him as he had to raise a 45-kilogram sandbag that weighed double when it rained, by pulling a rope that also became slippery. Tabac said it was raining at the start of the race and the downpour only stopped midway.

While on the course, however, he focused on his target of winning the race.

“Ang huna-huna nako Ma’am dili jud ko papilde (I thought of not losing),” he said. “Para sa akong family, sa akong mga sponsors, sa mga nagsalig sa akoang ability (For my family, sponsors, and those who believed in my ability),” Tabac, the first Asian male who finished in the top 20 of the Spartan World Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

What is next for Elias Tabac

He will start training in Mount Pulag in Luzon this week in preparation for the World Highest Obstacle Course racing set on November 4 at Mount Everest in Nepal.

Tabac, born in Bayugan City, Agusan del Sur, joined the Pilipinas Obstacle Sports Federation two years ago after topping a series of qualifying events that saw him defeating national team members.

His last race for the year is in December in Dubai. MLSA