Before influencers rose to popularity or famous personalities took to social media (or even before social media, for that matter), Filipinos were known to look up to celebrities, matinee idols, and the proverbial 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ 𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑎𝑦𝑎𝑛, which made its way to notebooks, food packaging, and even politics.
Even today, celebrities are staple names that dominate TV shows, telenovelas, advertisements, clothing brands, and social media. Their fame skyrocketed to greater heights with Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and the site formerly known as Twitter. Ads showed their latest endorsements and their profiles were riddled with new business ventures. Some even jumped onto the “a-day-in-the-life” train and were exposed to how they wake up, what they eat and everything else in between.
This doubled when our favorite mainstays decided to take up sports, particularly running and multisports like triathlon. As both disciplines suddenly became the new hit among Filipinos, celebrities used these as a pogo stick and transformed themselves into role models: prominent figures who promote a healthy lifestyle to a wider audience while maintaining their status and increasing their cult following.
𝐈𝐌𝐏𝐀𝐂𝐓 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐋𝐔𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄
If there is one word to describe celebrities, it’s influence. For lack of a better term, their fans are rabid and will pounce on anything and everything that will make them look and feel like their idols.
Case in point: if these celebrities advocate a certain product, endorse a politician, or do something new for a change, their fans are quick to follow. It is this impact on public behavior that attaches celebrities to Filipinos emotionally.
Social media platforms on the other hand, accelerated their stardom. Celebrities who are now sharing their fitness journey and achievements are inspiring a generation to take part in something that they are also involved in: running and triathlons are events that actors and personalities join as part of their strategy to expose themselves to the general public and to encourage the community to stay fit and healthy through sports.
𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐄
Notable Filipino celebrities are now sharing their passion for running and multisports through social media.
From Piolo Pascual and Matteo Guidicelli’s passion for running and triathlon, Kara David’s multisport diary, the transition of Gretchen Ho from volleyball to joining long-distance running, Anne Curtis’ New York City Marathon appearance to Kuya Kim’s increasingly popular #runvangelism, these high-profile influencers are tagging their fans along on their fitness journey.
Their appearance on regular fun runs and sporting events also influences others to join their cause. It’s a healthy infection, to say the least. Several key cities in the Philippines are slowly becoming sporting hubs, drawing both national and international athletes, as well as spectators, to visit, participate, and be part of their sports tourism advocacy.
For what it’s worth, celebrities are not joining these events to gain more popularity and draw in more fans to follow them. They join because they love the simplicity of running and the benefits the sport gives to the body. They travel and take part in international races because they’ve trained for months, sacrificing their time and effort to hone their skills despite their rigorous schedules.
