Filipino shooter Carlo Deniel Valdez won a bronze medal in the men’s 50-metre free pistol at the 47th Southeast Asia Shooting Championship in Bangkok, overcoming equipment troubles to secure the Philippines a podium finish in the event.
Valdez scored 546 points across six series (87, 93, 93, 96, 85, 92), finishing behind Kiettikul Sudkhet of Thailand, who took gold with 551, and Pham Quang Huy of Vietnam, who earned silver with 549.
The 22-year-old Valdez competed using a borrowed pistol after being unable to use his own, but maintained composure throughout the final to edge Thailand’s Pisit Singkarat (540) and Vietnam’s Nguyen Dinh Thanh (535) for third place.
The men’s 50m free pistol featured nine shooters from Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and other Southeast Asian nations. Sudkhet led all six rounds to claim the gold medal, two points ahead of Pham.
Philippine shooting officials said Valdez’s result was a boost for the national team, underscoring the country’s potential in regional competition despite limited resources and equipment access.
