At 7:10 a.m., Sunday March 13, the horn bellowed to signal the start of the 2022 Sagicor Sigma Run, with the inaugural Team Bubble Run, as runners representing 53 corporate companies across Jamaica, ran through the streets of New Kingston and Halfway Tree.
Due to the restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the race organizers adjusted the usual one-day race activity, to be run over two consecutive Sundays, hence corporate companies were invited to participate on this first race day. At the start of the run, a maximum of up to 240 runners went off, with subsequent waves going off every 10 minutes until all participants crossed the start line.
Dwimar Pinnock of the Court Administration Division was named the winner in the Corporate Male Run category, with a time of 24.31 minutes, followed by Kayon Fullerton of National Health Fund in 24.58 minutes, and Bank of Jamaica’s (BOJ) Phillip Hyman third, touching the mat in a time of 24.58. Richard Brown, a guest participant of BOJ’s team was the overall fastest male runner, touching the mat in a time of 22.54 minutes.
In the female category, Angelika Wollenweber of Jamaica Infrastructure Operators won in both the overall fastest female run, as well as the Corporate Female Run in 30.39 minutes, second was Chloe Hurge of National Commercial Bank, in 31.45, followed by Marsha Stephenson of Heart/NTA Trust in 31.46. The best overall Corporate Female Team was the Jamaica Defence Force with an average time of 36.57 minutes, while the Bank of Jamaica was the best overall male team, average time being 27.15 minutes. National Commercial Bank walked away with the Largest Corporate Team award with 154 registrants for the run.
Now in its 24th year, the Sigma Run has raised over $500 million for several organizations. With the Kingston Public Hospital set to benefit this year, Sagicor is hoping to raise $50 million to procure specialized medical equipment for the hospital.
An elated Christopher Zacca, President and CEO, Sagicor Group Jamaica, said: “This day is always special in the life of Sagicor. First, I would like to thank our sponsors and participants, my Sagicor team and the race day production team, who have found so many solutions to execute this road race in the pandemic. The beneficiary, Kingston Public Hospital has already expressed their gratitude for our efforts, and I want to thank all of Jamaica for the tremendous support they have given Sagicor over the years.”
Patrons for the event are 2021 Olympic Games female 100m hurdles bronze medalist, Megan Tapper, and fellow hurdler Hansle Parchment, who won the gold medal at 110m race.
On Sunday, March 20, 2022, starting at 7:00 a.m., the Sigma Run will culminate with its Invitational Run.
