By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Team Philippines completed a sweep of the four obstacle race golds in the 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games after capturing two relay golds at the Chroy Changvar Convention Center Car Park in Phnom Penh, Cambodia yesterday morning.
Mecca Cortizano clinched the women’s relay team gold for Team Philippines when she touched the pole at the end of the race just ahead by a second against her Indonesian counterpart.
Aside from Cortizano, also part of the Philippine Obstacle Race Women’s relay squad that finished in 33.73 seconds in the finals were Mhick Tejares, Sandi Abahan and Tess Nocyao.
Meanwhile, Jay-R de Castro, Mervin Guarte, Elias Tabac, and Ahgie Radan bagged the obstacle race men’s relay team gold for the country after ending the competition in 24.47 seconds to beat Malaysia.
On Saturday, May 6, Team Philippines had a gold-silver medal finish in the women’s event courtesy of Precious Cabuya and Kaizen dela Cerna, and also a 1-2 finish in the men’s event by Mark Julian Rodelas and Kevin Pascua.
Kim Mangrobang captured her fourth consecutive SEA Games gold medal after outsprinting her opponents in the women’s individual duathlon, which included a French naturalized player for Cambodia.
Filipina jiu-jitsu athlete Annie Ramirez claimed her third straight SEA Games gold medal after beating Vietnamese Thi Thuong Le via knee bar in the gold medal match of the women’s ne-waza nogi 57kg class.
“I’m just happy to win the medal for the third time,” 32-year-old Ramirez said, who defeated Cambodia’s Mab Sokhouy and Thailand’s Orapa Senatham on her way to the finals.
Team Philippines also added three bronzes from jiu-jitsu from Myron Mangubat in the men’s 62kg Ne-Waza GI, Luan Gutierrez and AC Divina in the Women’s Classic Duo, and Jason Cayari and Raymond Villaraza, Jr. in the Men’s Duo Show.
Sakura Alforte snapped Team Philippines’ gold medal drought in karate as she topped the women’s individual kata gold, while Filipina-Japanese Junna Tsukii settled for a silver medal finish in the individual female -50kg kumite.
Inaki Emil Lorbes, Kira Ellis and Erika Nicole Burgos also added to Team Philippines’ gold haul as they topped the mixed relay team aquathlon; Andre Kim Remolino ended with silver in the men’s aquathlon.
The quartet of Teia Salvino, Miranda Renner, Xiandi Chua, and Jasmine Alkhaldi clinched a silver finish in the women’s 100-m freestyle relay swimming, while Jerard Jacinto had a bronze in the men’s 100-m backstroke.
Shania Mae Mendoza and Janelle Mae Frayna captured a silver in the Ouk Chatrang Women’s 60-minute doubles, while Paulo Bersamina, Jan Emmanuel Garcia, Joey Antonio, and Darwin Laylo ended with a bronze medal in the Men’s Quadruple 60-minute event./ASC, WDJ