THE four athletes who won medals in the third Asian Indoor Games in Vietnam will be at the forefront of the 251-strong Philippine delegation to the 25th Southeast Asian Games in Laos.
Female boxer Annie Albania and her teammates Mitchel Martinez and Josie Gabuco, plus Beijing Olympics veteran Miguel Molina are expected to spearhead the country’s campaign following their impressive showing in Hanoi.
Albania won the gold in the 51-kg division after beating Thai foe Sopida Satumrum, while Martinez reached the 60-kg finals after turning back Vietnam rival Thu Vui Nguyen. Martinez settled for the silver while Gabuco picked up a bronze in the 46-kg. class.
Molina, on the other hand, broke the two-minute barrier in the 200-meter individual medley to finish with a silver medal (1:59.89) behind Kazakhstan foe Dmitrity Gordiyenko (1:57.50).
Philippine Olympic Committee president Peping Cojuangco said yesterday that in the future, they will put emphasis forming a contingent composed of a younger and promising batch of athletes, but will have to be content with a mix of veterans and youngsters for this year’s SEA Games.
So far, only athletics, swimming, shooting and archery were able to bring in younger talents to their respective delegations for the games.
“It’s not really a young delegation. But it’s a delegation that’s capable of representing the country, and they deserve to go,” said Cojuangco after sports officials submitted the final roster to SEA Games organizers in Laos by e-mail yesterday.
Four more entries from beach volleyball and three more officials were added to the final roster, bringing the total number of Filipino athletes to 251, out of the 386 total, including coaches and officials.
A 20-member athletics squad will make up the biggest batch of Filipino delegates to the games, followed by a 16-strong swimming team and 16 taekwondo jins.
“We’re doing quite well in terms of medals. We have surpassed our previous performance in the Asian Indoor Games. This is a good sign for our campaign in Laos,” Mark Joseph said.
