Singapore— Flexing for a finishing kick, Team Philippines scored golden victories in taekwondo, tennis and sailing Sunday to breathe life into the country’s Southeast Asian Games campaign here.
Late into the night, Sam Morrison crushed Vietnam’s Phan Trung Duc, 19-12, to capture the gold medal in men’s 68kg in taekwondo in a victory that rocked the Singapore Expo Hall 2 and bolstered the Philippines’ hopes of improving its gold medal output.
Nineteen-year-old Pauline Lopez made a quick follow-up victory when she ruled the women’s 57kg after outlasting Vietnam’s Phan Thi Thu Hien, 20-12, for the top prize, hiking the country’s haul for the day to four.
With just two full days of competition, the Philippines only has 28 golds, 35 silvers and 64 bronzes to show, still a gold short of what is considered its worst-ever finish in the biennial games two years ago in Burma.
In 2013, the country came up with a measly 29 golds and finished 7th overall. Now the country is looking at just one more gold when the men’s basketball team sees action in today’s final.
In the morning, Tennis’ Treat Huey and Denise Dy and the men’s keelboat team brought sunshine to an otherwise gloomy day for the Philippines after topping the tennis mixed doubles and sailing titles.
Huey and Dy, the 2011 champions, bundled out Thais Sonchat Ratiwatana and Peangtarn Plipuech, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4, before a big Filipino group of cheerers at Court 4 of the Kallang Tennis Center that was drenched by rains overnight.
“It was great coming out here to win the gold medal for the Philippines,” said the 29-year-old Huey, the world No. 49 in doubles and regular grand slam campaigner. “The crowd support really carried us out to fight.”
At the choppy waters of the National Sailing Center in East Coast Parkway, Ridgely Baladares, Rommel Chavez and Richly Magsanay topped the male match racing keelboat competitions to collect the Philippines’ second gold of the day, putting movement to the country’s gold tally that stopped Saturday.
The Philippine sailors bested Singapore with a score of 1-0.
After just an hour of the mixed doubles match, Dy went out to play women’s doubles with Katharina Lehnert, but they bowed to Thailand’s Noppawan Lertcheewakarn and Varatchaya Wongteancha, 6-3, 6-4 for a silver medal.
It was big boost, though, to the dwindling battle for the Philippines, which lost the gold in archery when Amaya Cojuangco bowed to Malaysia’s Fatin Nurferahah Matt Saleeh in women’s individual compound final at Kallang Cricket Field.
Two-time rowing champion Nestor Cordova also settled for silver in men’s single scull 1,000-meter. He clocked three minutes and 30.47 seconds for the course at Marina Channel, but it wasn’t enough to beat Indonesia’s Memo Memo who finished 3:27.25 for the gold.
Archery also produced two bronzes through the men’s team compound and women’s team compound, while rowing got another third-place finish through Edgar Ilas and Benjie Tolentino in men’s lightweight double scull 1,000m.
Also chipping in bronze for the day were wake boarders Mark Howard Griffin and Maiquel Jawn Selga placed third in team competitions at Bedok Reservoir.
Despite the presence of road race competitions in the country, the country’s male cyclists were shut out in the competition. /inquirer