BANGKOK—Olympic medalist Kayla Noelle Sanchez and regional champ Chino Sy Tancontian kept Team Philippines on the gold trail, while Filipino athletes added silver and bronze medals in figure-skating and set the stage for crucial battles across several fronts in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games on Saturday.
Sanchez, a silver medalist for Canada in the Tokyo Olympics before switching allegiance to the Philippines afterwards, ruled the Women’s 100m Backstroke final event, clocking an impressive 54.82 seconds for the gold, the Philippines’ 13th overall as off press time.
It was Sanchez’s third gold in the games, the first as part of the Philippines’ women’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay team and another in the women’s 100-meter freestyle individual event, making her easily the Most Valuable Athlete for the country in the games.
Earlier, Tancontian secured the country’s 12th gold medal after ruling the men’s -100kg judo division, pinning down Indonesia’s Gede Ganding via ippon in the final at the Rajamangala University of Technology in Pathum Thani.
The victory was the second SEA Games gold for the 24-year-old judoka, who also topped the men’s -82kg class in the 2019 edition in Manila.
A product of the University of Santo Tomas, Tancontian drew strength from his pedigree as a former UAAP champion and Southeast Asian Sambo titlist, delivering the win after Team Philippines came up empty in the morning and early afternoon sessions.
As the Philippines’ gold-medal machine slowed down at 13, it slipped to no. 6 in the medal standings, with Malaysia now occupying fifth spot with 14 golds.
On the ice, Philippine figure skating shone as Maxine Bautista and Paolo Borromeo contributed a silver and a bronze medal, respectively.
Competing in her first SEA Games, Bautista captured silver in the women’s event with an overall score of 129.33.
“Honestly, it’s amazing. I’m just happy to bring back a medal for the Philippines,” Bautista said. “It was so much fun, like this experience, the atmosphere, everyone. And it’s fun to be with my team, too.”
In the men’s event, Borromeo fought through persistent back pain to secure the bronze in his SEA Games’ debut.
“I’m mostly relieved to at least have taken home a medal,” Borromeo said. “My skate is not what I’m capable of but I’m happy to have fought through it.”
The boxing ring also delivered drama as Flint Jara shrugged off a bloody cut to score a hard-earned 3-2 victory over Indonesia’s Flanuari Yerikho Daud, advancing to the semifinals of the men’s 54kg division.
“Sanay po akong matalo sa round 1. That’s why tatlo po ‘yung rounds sa boxing,” Jara said. “Sanay na po ako sa ganoong adjustment.”
The win helped ease the sting of a controversial loss suffered earlier by Olympic silver medalist Nesthy Petecio, who bowed out via split decision 3-2 loss to Indonesia Hasanah Huswatun in the women’s 63kg division, but remained composed afterward.
“Kita naman,” Petecio said with a laugh. “But lagi kong nirerespeto ‘yung decision ng mga judges.”
As competition intensifies, Team Philippines now turns its attention to several medal-rich fronts. Gilas Pilipinas opens its men’s basketball campaign against Malaysia, buoyed by the late inclusion of veteran center Poy Erram.
“Poy brings a lot of veteran presence to our team,” said Gilas coach Norman Black. “I think he will help us in terms of size… particularly on the defensive end.”
In women’s volleyball, Alas Pilipinas eyes a long-awaited return to the finals when it clashes with Vietnam in the crossover semifinals, with skipper Jia De Guzman confident the team is regaining its rhythm.
“We were able to get looser, get more comfortable,” De Guzman said. “So we’ll be riding into the next round with this momentum.”
The Filipinas, meanwhile, face host Thailand with a historic finals berth in women’s football on the line.
“And we believe we can win this game and we can play in the gold-medal match,” coach Mark Torcaso said. “That’s what we want to do for our country and for all the people back at home.”
Another potential highlight looms in weightlifting, where Olympic champion Hidilyn Diaz is set to finally see action, raising hopes for another golden lift.
