Bogo City pride Noel Tillor finally topped the men’s open division of the Borneo International Marathon.

The 31-year-old Tillor finished the 42-kilometer course in 2 hours, 48 minutes and 13 seconds.

Tillor’s victory marked the first time that a Filipino won the title in the prestigious race.

It was a great comeback win for Tillor, who missed his opportunity in the last two editions of the event in 2014 and 2015. He placed second in his first try in 2014, where he finished in 2:49:21 behind Kenyan John Waithaka Njiha. Another disappointment came the following year as he was forced to stop three kilometers from the finish line due to an injury.

The third time was a charm as Tillor made sure that he would emerge victorious as he took the men’s open crown of the race that featured 8,500 runners.

Sources: Cebu Daily News, SunStar News