IF SOMEONE were to tell a young Elbren Neri that he would someday be a decorated runner for the UST Tracksters, he would not have believed him.
The 20-year-old Neri has seen success both in the local and international scene, having won five medals in three ASEAN University Games.
He first bagged bronze in the 800-meter dash in Laos in 2012, followed by a second- and a third-place finish in 800-meter and 1500-meter runs, respectively, in Indonesia in 2014.
Last July in Singapore, the fifth-year Trackster finally broke through as he tallied a gold medal in the 800-meter event and settled for silver in the 1500m, yielding to fellow Filipino Jomar Angus.
Neri had to surpass life’s hurdles to success—imposing different challenges starting with the death of his father.
“Bata pa lang ako, nagsasaka na ako. Nagtratrabaho kami sa kapitbahay namin para kumita, magkaroon lang ng pambili ng bigas,” Neri told the Varsitarian.
Neri had no choice but to work before and after school to come up with money for their daily sustenance while living in the hardscrabble municipality of Alubijid in Misamis Oriental. Even though the income was not enough for a decent meal, it was enough for them to eat bananas three times a day to survive.
The then-elementary pupil Elbren and his older brother, Ramil, used to lean on their mother for inspiration while they made charcoal out of coconut shells.
“Sabi ng nanay ko, ‘Okay lang ‘yan, tiyaga muna kayo dito. May awa naman ang Diyos.’ Grabe ‘yun. Susugat talaga ang mga kamay ko. ‘Pag naiisip ko ‘yung mga nangyari sa akin, naiiyak na lang ako.”
Envy to glory
In high school, Elbren used to see his brother go home with medals, trophies and cash prizes won from running competitions held in the different parts of Mindanao.
The Education major was then enticed to follow his brother’s footsteps at the ripe age of 16, an age in which heavy training required for conditioning might already be difficult for a teenager’s body.
Ramil, already a well-known marathoner in Mindanao, trained Elbrin three times a day as his first coach. The intense training sessions had already taken a toll on Elbrin’s right knee but it did not stop him from pursuing the path his brother took.
“’Pag alas-dose ng tanghali, ‘yun ang pinakamahirap. Tumatakbo kami minsan 21-kilometers at 10-kilometers. Sobrang init. Kaya minsan, gusto ko nang uminom ng tubig. Pero ‘pag madami naman ang nainom mo, sasakit ang tiyan mo. Kaya minsan, umiiyak ako. Pero nag-tuloy-tuloy na lang ako.”
Eventually, his hard work paid off as he saw action in the 2011 Palarong Pambansa held in Dapitan City, Zamboanga del Norte where he was discovered and recruited by Arellano University coach Butchoy del Rosario.
Manila-bound
As Neri played his final year of high school for the Arellano Chiefs, he broke the NCAA junior’s record in the 800-meter dash.
Although he was already committed to join FEU for college where he was set to join South East Asian Games medalist Christopher Ulboc, he had a change of heart to don the black and gold. It was his girlfriend and teammate, Jessah Mae Fernandez, who ultimately convinced him to instead go to España.
“[S]abi niya dito na lang ako sa UST kasi maganda ang benefits. Minsan sa Arellano kasi walang pagkain at mga vitamins ganoon. Pero sumusuporta sila sa athlete, ‘di katulad nang sa UST maganda ang pag-suporta nila sa mga athlete.”
While he has enjoyed a lot of success representing the University and the country for four years, Neri still had to endure life’s hardships as his monthly athlete stipend failed to support him. This forced him to run three times a week in fun runs in an attempt to win prizes to help him sustain his nutrition.
“Noong walang-wala talaga ako, sabi ko sa sarili ko, ‘Gusto ko na umuwi.’ Gutom na gutom ako, wala naman akong pera. Isa rin ‘yun sa nakakatulong sa akin, ‘yung mga fun run. Kasi competition din yun eh, kaya ang pressure sa pakikipaglaban, nawawala.”
Now a member of the national training pool, the 22-year-old no longer have to join fun runs in the weekends as he receives additional support from the national government, which in turn he uses to aid his jobless mother back in Alubijid.
