BANGKOK—The Philippines banked on the brute force of jiu-jitsu and the fluid motion of artistic gymnastics to deliver the good tidings in the form of three gold medals for the Philippines in Day 3 of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games here on Thursday.
At the Navaminda Kasatiryahiraj Air Force Academy, jiu-jitsu standouts Kimberly Custodio and Dean Roxas spearheaded the charge.
Custodio, a three-time world champion making her SEA Games debut, turned a tense tactical duel into gold in the women’s 48kg ne-waza event, scraping ahead of Thailand’s Sugun Nutchaya with a decisive three-point control in the final 30 seconds.
Roxas followed with a mighty statement of his own, forcing a quick submission against Singapore’s Aacus Hou Yu Ee in the men’s 85kg final—an emphatic return after nursing an injury just weeks earlier.
A few kilometers away at the Thammasat University’s Gymnasium 5, the jiu-jitsu found its perfect foil in the grace of Aleah Finnegan.
The Paris Olympian reclaimed her place atop the podium, capturing her second SEA Games gold by winning the women’s vault with a score of 13.433—adding to the two titles she claimed in the 2022 Hanoi Games.
Finnegan’s performance, marked by clean lines and explosive yet elegant execution, came with a dose of drama as scoring mix-up briefly flashed an incorrect result. The 22-year-old Fil-American waited nearly half an hour before judges corrected the tally.
“This one is incredibly special,” Finnegan said, noting the personal struggles she fought through leading up to the competition. “I prayed to Jesus all the time. I am nothing without Him. I know He is with me.”
Gymnastics Association of the Philippines president Cynthia Carrion said she was confident from the moment Finnegan landed her vault. “From the start, I knew it was gold for us.”
Finnegan now moves on to the balance beam finals on Friday.
The Philippines now occupy fifth spot in the medal standings as of 7 p.m. (Thailand time) with a gold-silver-bronze haul of 5-5-19.
