FILIPINO athletes will once again be on the spotlight in the Southeast Asian Games' 32nd edition in Cambodia. The Philippines will be looking to duplicate, if not surpass, the fourth place finish in Vietnam where it collected 52 gold medals.
For this edition, the gold medals could come from these athletes and teams – most of them no longer new to winning in the SEA Games.
EJ OBIENA AND THE ATHLETICS TEAM
EJ Obiena is a cinch for gold once again at the SEA Games based on his performance over the past few years in pole vault. Also expected to fare well are William Morrison in shot put and discus, Natalie Uy in pole vault, Christine Hallasgo in marathon, Kayla Richardson in the women’s 100-meter dash, and Clinton Bautista in the men’s 110-meter hurdles.
CARLOS YULO
The Philippine gymnastics team is banking on Carlos Yulo, although he will be competing in limited events due to a cap placed by the local organizers. He'll be going for gold in four events, namely individual all-around, team all-around, parallel bars, and horizontal bars.
GILAS PILIPINAS
Despite its silver finish in Hanoi last year, the Gilas Pilipinas Men remain a contender for the gold. The team will now be anchored by Barangay Ginebra resident import Justin Brownlee who was naturalized for the national team a few months ago. Gilas' redemption bid, however, won't be easy with defending champion Indonesia and Thailand standing in the way.
GILAS WOMEN
The Philippine women’s team will be seeking a third straight SEA Games crown with a team led by Jack Animam, who is making a comeback from an ACL injury. Animam is the only addition to the team, with Gilas Women maintaining the core from last year’s SEA Games wars.
OCR TEAM
Obstacle course racing returns to the SEA Games in Phnom Penh after the Philippine team won six out of six events in 2019 held at the Filinvest City in Alabang.
[Writer’s note: The Philippine obstacle team is vying for four gold medals as of posting time]
FILIPINAS
With the team in deep preparations for the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup, the Filipinas will definitely be vying for the gold in Cambodia. But Alen Stajcic and his team will face strong opposition from fellow World Cup-bound Vietnam, Thailand, and Myanmar.
[Writer’s note: The Filipinas lost in their opening match against Myanmar, 1-0]
VANESSA SARNO
With Hidilyn Diaz opting not to compete in the SEA Games due to her build-up for the Paris Olympics, Vanessa Sarno will be leading the Philippine weightlifting campaign as the former Asian champion defends the 71kg gold that she captured in Hanoi.
KIM MANGROBANG
Southeast Asian’s queen of triathlon is now gunning for her fourth SEA Games gold in the event. She is also out to go for her sixth gold, being entered in duathlon as well.
SAMANTHA CATANTAN
The Penn State standout is shooting for her second straight SEA Games crown which is not far-fetched after she made it to the 2023 NCAA Fencing Championships.
BILLIARDS TEAM
The gold medal hopes of the billiards team in this year’s SEA Games rests on the shoulders of Carlo Biado and Johann Chua in the men’s pool where they are entered in the singles and doubles. The scrapping of women’s pool for this year is a big blow for the country's medal chances, leaving Rubilen Amit and Chezka Centeno no choice but to try their luck in the carom.
BOXING TEAM
A traditional source of medals in the SEA Games, Carlo Paalam is expected to be prominent in the gold medal bid of the Philippine team after winning the Asian title last year. Rogen Ladon, Ian Clark Bautista, Nesthy Petecio, and Irish Magno are also top contenders for the gold.
WUSHU TEAM
Agatha Wong will be eyeing a fourth gold medal in the SEA Games. Jones Inso could also be in the hunt after missing the gold last year by .01 in the men’s taijiquan. World juniors champion in Quiangshu (spear) Sandrex Gainsan is also entered.
CHLOE ISLETA
Isleta made waves when she ruled the women’s 200-meter backstroke in Hanoi, the first for the Philippines in aquatics after 29 years. She also bagged two silver medals, and she is expected to once again be a gold medal contender.
ARNIS TEAM
The event returns to the SEA Games calendar this year. In 2019, the Philippines captured 14 gold medals.
DANCE SPORTS
Breakdance will make its debut in the SEA Games and the Philippines looks capable of bagging a podium finish with Filipino-American Logan Elanna Edra, or better known as BGirl LOGISTX, making it to the pool. Edra is tagged by the dance sports federation as a possible qualifier to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
E-SPORTS
Sibol returns for this year’s SEA Games to defend the Mobile Legends Bang Bang crown.
KICKBOXING
Gina Iniong-Araos and Jean Claude Saclag are back to vie for a second straight SEA Games title in kickboxing.
KARATE TEAM
The Philippine karate team went without a gold in Hanoi but is keen on bouncing back this year in Phnom Penh. Junna Tsukii has maintained her excellent form over the past few months, being ranked No. 12 in the world in the women’s kumite -50kg, the highest-rated among Southeast Asian nations.
JIU-JITSU TEAM
Meggie Ochoa and Annie Ramirez are back in their bid to retain the SEA Games title.
TAEKWONDO TEAM
The taekwondo team has been a rich source of medals over the years. It should deliver this tear in poomsae, where Jocel Lyn Ninobla won, and in the kyorugi where Tokyo Olympian Kurt Barbosa is entered.
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