NATIONAL track and field athletes can expect a strong challenge as the Ayala Philippine Athletic Championships has lured 160 entries in 19 events each in both the men’s and women’s divisions on Dec. 9 and 10 at the Philsports oval in Pasig City.
“Since the event will be our national team tryouts for the Vietnam SEA Games and the Hangzhou Asian Games, the standards that we have set are pretty high,” said newly-reelected Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association President Philip Ella Juico.
It will be the first competition organized by the Patafa for the national athletic bets since the Southeast Asian Games at the New Clark City Athletic Stadium in Capas, Tarlac in 2019 where they garnered 11 gold, eight silver, and eight bronze medals to wind up third overall in the eight-nation meet.
The bulk of the national team has been training at the Baguio Atheltic Bowl since mid-October through the support of the Philippine Sports Commission and are set to travel to the Philsports Complex on Nov. 28 to prepare for the national meet that was last held in Ilagan, Isabela two years ago.
There was no national tournament in 2020 due to the pandemic so the national athletes are keen on competing in the December meet to gauge their performances and fitness while trying to keep their slots in the national squad, according to Juico.
Making a comeback is former Asian long jump queen Marestella Torres-Sunang, who did not compete in the SEA Games two years ago.
Juico said there is a possibility the gold, silver and bronze medalists in the last 2019 SEA Games would be sent to Austin, Texas as part of their buildup for both the Vietnam SEA Games and Asian Games.
Except for pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena, who is training and competing in Europe, Juico had identified seven Fil-Am bets, led by 2019 SEA Games double gold medalists Eric Shawn Cray and Kristina Knott likely to train in Texas.
Aside from Cray and Knott, a Tokyo Olympic veteran, the other Fil-Ams still on the squad are pole vaulter Natalie Uy, shot putter William Morrison, sprint siblings Kayla and Kyla Richarson, Fil-Canadian runner Zion Corales Nelson and hurdler Robyn Brown.
Juico said that Fil-Am brothers Yacine and Said, both middle distance runners, are also being considered to be members of the national squad.
“We are also looking at another female Fil-Am runner who we are eying for the 200 meters and 4×100 and 4×400-meter relays. We are working on her papers at the moment so that I cannot divulge the name as of yet,” Juico said.
