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GUANGZHOU, China — The Filipino athletes’ gold-medal bid got stalled on Friday, the seventh day of competition in the 16th Asian Games, with only Thsomlee Go in men’s taekwondo averting a medal shutout.
Go salvaged a bronze in the under 63kgs event. He scored consecutive wins against Iran’s Nederian Reza (9-7) and Tajikistan’s Giyosov Krushav (11-3) but lost to Korean Lee Dae Hoon in the semi-final.
Go’s bronze was a welcome addition to the two gold medals won by bowler Engelberto “Biboy" Rivera and Surigao pride Dennis Orcollo who won an all-Filipino final in billiards.
Warren Kiamco settled for the 9-ball billiards silver, while bronze medals were earlier earned by the dancesport pair of Stevee Vergara and Charlea Lagaras, bowler Frederick Ong, and shansou fighter Mark Eddiva in wushu.
Jeffrey Figueroa also flirted with a podium finish when he edged United Arab Emirates’ Rashed Bilal Khamis, 5-3, in the under 68kgs class. But he tallied more penalties against Tajikistan’s Farkhod Negmatov after a 6-6 standoff, and thus failed to advance.
Maria Camille Manalo started on the wrong foot against Dhunyanun Premwhaew of Thailand and lost 2-5 in the under-62 kgs division.
News on other events were not that encouraging for Team Philippines.
Gold prospect Miguel Luis Tabuena, turning in a two-over-74 in the critical third round, surrendered his two-day leader’s position to Korea’s Whee Meen Kim, who had the day’s second best round of 67.
At 204 entering the final day Saturday, Kim now enjoys a six-stroke lead over Tabuena (210).
Korea also paced the team race with 624 while the Philippines and Thailand were in a tie for second and third at 653 going into the last 18 holes.
In women’s play, the PHL team remained at sixth overall even as Chichiro Ikeda made a move in the individual standings with a 2-under 70 that catapulted her to 11th.
Maria Imelda Piccio faltered with a 79 that did not count, while Dottie Ardina could only contribute a 76. With a three-day aggregate of 306, the Filipinas were 21 strokes behind leader Korea.
In bowling, Rivera and trios teammates Chester King and Ong downed 1,900 pinfalls, good only for ninth place. The other Filipino trios team — Collins Jose, Benshir Layoso and Raoul Miranda — only had 1736 while Korea dominated the event with 2,053.
Two other female trios — Liza Clutario, Liza del Rosario and Marianne Daisy Posadas, and Kimberly Mae Lao, Lara Posadas and Krizziah Lyn Tabora — see action on Saturday aiming to add a medal of any color to the PHL athletes’ modest haul so far.
Trap shooter Hagen Topacio, third overnight in the individual race, failed to find his mark on Friday with a 41 after a 72 and dropped 15 places, while teammates Eric Ang (65-45) and Jethro Dionisio (67-46) did not make significant progress as the squad moved out of the medal picture completely, placing fifth in an event won by a Lebanon trio.
All three Filipinos did not make the top ten in the individual standing.
In his final race for lightweight single sculls, Benjamin Tolentino (7:16.55) landed seventh overall, while fencing’s Walbert Mendoza was third among five after bowing to China’s Wang Jingzhi in individual sabre.
Cecil Mamiit and Treat Conrad Huey gave some positive news after both netters advanced to the second round of the men’s tennis singles event.
Huey humbled Nepal’s Kumar Adhikari, 6-0, 6-1, while Mamiit defeated Martin Christopher Sayer of Hong Kong, 7-5, 7-5.
The doubles team of Johnny Arcilla and Ruben Gonzales Jr. failed to handle the Indian pair of SK Devvarman and Sanamkrishan Singh, 4-6, 2-6. –
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