PHILIPPINE track and field officials are hoping to sending the country's largest delegation to the Olympics in over three decades.
Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) president Philip Ella Juico is hoping Natalie Uy in women's pole vault, Eric Cray in the men's 400m hurdles, Kristina Knott in the women's 200m, and William Morrison in men's shotput could book tickets to the Tokyo Olympics moved to next year.
EJ Obiena has already qualified for the men's pole vault event after clearing the 5.80 meter entry standard in a tournament in Chiara, Italy.
All five won gold medals in the 30th Southeast Asian Games in 2019.
"We have four more and we are hoping that we can have all of them in plus EJ, and that makes it five (athletes)," he told So She Did.
The Philippines had three entries in athletics in the 2016 Rio Olympics, with Cray in participating in the men's 400m hurdles, Mary Joy Tabal in women's marathon and Marestella Torres in women's long jump.
In the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, six Filipinos competed in track and field.
Leading that cast was Lydia de Vega, who participated in the women's 100m and 200m.
Also part of that delegation were Isidro del Prado (men's 400m), Leonardo Illut (men's marathon), Hector Begeo (men's 3000m steeplechase), Agripina de la Cruz (women's 400m hurdles) and Elma Muros (women's long jump).
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