Cebuano sportsman Dr. Potenciano ‘Yong’ S. Larrazabal III has made many great achievements in his storied running career.
Back in April 2018, Larrazabal received a Six Star Finisher Medal from the prestigious Abbott World Marathon Majors for completing six of the world’s largest road races in New York, Berlin, Chicago, London, Tokyo, and Boston.
The following year, he finished the 2019 Antarctic Ice Marathon under extreme sub-zero temperatures and fierce conditions to join the exclusive 7 Continents Marathon Club composed of elite runners who completed a marathon on all seven continents.
Going full circle in February 2020, the renowned eye surgeon etched his name in stone as the first Filipino to conquer the World Marathon Challenge, a punishing test to run seven marathons on seven continents in seven days.
And just recently, Larrazabal accomplished another historic milestone after reaching his 100th marathon at the Singlife Cebu International Marathon 2026 last July 12.
‘I chose Cebu so that my family, friends, and classmates can celebrate with me,’ said the president and chairman of Cebu Doctors’ Group of Hospitals during a special event celebrating his monumental feat at Seda Ayala Center Cebu.
From the freezing Antarctic ice to the brisk coastal winds, cool sea breezes, and wet sand of North Sea Beach Marathon in Denmark and the highly demanding Great Wall Marathon in China, Larrazabal shared that he went through a lot of ups and downs since his first international marathon race in Pasig City 19 years ago.
But when the going gets tough, he always perseveres.
‘Each run has its own challenges but if you’re committed and trained enough, you will excel and succeed. You may not be the fastest, you may not be the toughest.But I continue, I never give up,’ he said.
For Larrazabal, preparation is the key to success.
‘You have to respect the distance, it’s 42 kilometers. If you decide to join a race, come ready for it. you should have the right mileage in training, and the right mindset because if you come just with motivation, motivation alone will not let you finish the race safely,’ Larrazabal continued.
Now part of the elite 100 Marathon Club, Larrazabal is not yet done from there.
He braces for another endeavor in life, with hopes of further cementing his legacy in the running community through a book titled ‘There’s Always Another Finish Line:Leadership lessons from running 100 marathons’, which he will be launching soon.
‘I may have finished 100 marathons but this is not the finish line because in life this is just the beginning. This is a starting line of discovering new roles, new friends, new opportunities, and new ways to inspire other people,’ said Larrazabal.
‘One of my projects that I will be launching soon, five years in the making, I wrote this book, There’s Always Another Finish Line (Leadership lessons from running 100 marathons).’
‘This journey would not be possible without the support, of course, of God, my family, my friends, my classmates. I hope you continue to support me in the next journey that I will be hopefully joining soon. Thank you everyone and God bless us all!’ Larrazabal ended.