Italy-based Filipino Lorenzo Castro Jr. has proven time and again that he is not just a participant in the races he enters, but that he also excels and often leads in them, proudly wearing the Philippine flag on his club jersey every time he runs.
His latest win is a 3rd place finish on September 28 at the 50th edition of the Mugello Marathon, the oldest marathon in Italy.
Castro, who belongs to the G.S. Maiano Club and is the founder of Pinoy Runners Firenze, completed the 42.2-kilometer race in 2 hours and 36 minutes, just 12 minutes behind the winner Jean Baptiste Simukeka from Rwanda. The race attracted a total of 344 participants.
Only less than a week before that, the 42-year-old Filipino runner won the 48th Passeggiata Panoramica held on September 22 in Quarrata, Italy. He finished the 15.8-km race in 55 minutes and 20 seconds, three months after ruling the Trofeo B. Guigni-Fiesole run on June 2 and the Pistoia-San Marcello 30km ultramarathon on June 30.
In a Facebook post on October 3, the Philippine Embassy in Italy acknowledged Castro’s achievements and congratulated him.
And the list goes on
Castro was the best Filipino finisher in last year’s BMW Berlin Marathon, clocking 2 hours, 35 minutes and 51 seconds. He outpaced over 100 fellow Filipino runners in an event that attracted around 48,000 participants.
In October 2023, he clocked 1 hour, 13 minutes and 13 seconds to win the silver medal at the Mugello half-marathon. In the same month, he also secured second place at the Trofeo Madonna dei Fiori in Scandicci as well as at Livorno Half Marathon, which he completed in 1 hour, 11 minutes and 38 seconds.
Further, he registered a personal best time of 2 hours, 33 minutes and 47 seconds at the 39th Firenze Marathon last November, finishing 18th overall in the men’s division and second in his age category.
He reached the podium 12 times in 2022, a true testament to his passion and dedication, which will be tested again as he prepares for the Firenze Marathon this November and the Rome Marathon, where over 30,000 competitors from different countries will vie for the top spots on March 16, 2025.
Castro lives in Florence with his wife Noreen and children Rykiel, Tulisse and Tamara.
Written with contributions from Alona Cochon.
