CHONBURI, Thailand – Malea Cesar wept tears of joy when she and the entire Philippine women’s football team watched her sister Naomi bring home the gold medal in the women’s 800m of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games at their team hotel.
The Filipinas’ Facebook page captured the emotional moment of Malea in tears and being hugged by teammate Inna Palacios after her 16-year-old sister brought home the gold in the women’s 800m by just 0.1 seconds.
Even before her sister’s gold medal conquest, Malea said being with her sister at the same competition is already a special moment.
“It’s definitely emotional,” said Malea in an interview days prior to Naomi competing in the athletics competition.
“For me, the most emotional moment for me representing the country was the 31st SEA Games. That was my first one. And now, to have that with my sister, and sharing it to my family, it’s really special,” she added.
READ: Naomi Cesar wins gold in SEAG by ruling women’s 800m in athletics
The Cesar sisters also have a 20-year-old brother Avery who is attending Western Colorado University.
The 22-year-old Malea said that even when they were young, she knows the magnitude of SEA Games because of their father Ben.
The elder Cesar used to be a sprinter for the Philippines in the 1991 SEA Games in Manila before migrating to the United States, and now works with Asics.
Malea made her SEA Games debut in the Hanoi edition in 2022 and won bronze alongside the women’s football team.
“It’s something that we both talked about a lot and heard about before when we were growing up because of our dad,” said Malea, the eldest among three siblings with Naomi being the youngest. “He ran in the SEA Games as well. We know what it means to be here.”
“For him, those were the competitions that he talked about growing up so that’s how I always know that I can compete at the SEA Games and compete for the SEA Games. That’s something that I’m always super proud of, to have my dad represent our country,” she added.
Malea shared she and Naomi actually played the same sports before settling into the one that they are playing right now.
“I did a little bit [of athletics] in high school. But I’ve always love football more. I like to chase the ball instead of just running," she shared.
“She [Naomi] did a little bit [of football]. She did a little bit with the U17 national teams as well. But she always excelled at running."
On Wednesday, it will be the turn of Malea to vie for the gold medal as the Filipinas look to close out the SEA Games with another historic victory when they face four-time defending champion Vietnam in the gold medal match.
After the bronze in Hanoi and already a silver already assured for her here, Malea is now eyeing for the gold.
“It’s an honor and it’s not something that we don’t take lightly. We’ve talked about what it means on this stage,” she said.
“It’s definitely emotional. For me, the most emotional moment for me representing the country was the 31st SEA Games. That was my first one. And now, to have that with my sister, and sharing it to my family, it’s really special."
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
