HANOI—Christine Hallasgo clinched silver in women’s marathon to cap the country’s campaign in athletics at the 31st Southeast Asian Games on Thursday.
Hallasgo was in contention for the gold in the final 600 meters until cramps set in and forced her to cross the finish second at the My Dihn National Stadium.
Hallasgo, the marathon queen in the 2019 Philippine edition, clocked two hours, 56 minutes and .07 second.
Olympian Odekta Naibaho Elvina of Indonesia won the gold medal in 2:55.280 while Vietnam’s Ngoc Hoa Hoang Thi finished third in 2:57.350.
Hallasgo’s silver was the seventh for Team Philippines in athletics to go with five golds and 14 bronze medals.
The team failed to match or surpass its 11 gold, eight silver and eight bronze medals in 2019 at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium in Tarlac, but Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (Patafa) head coach Joeffrey Chua still considers the stint here a success.
“This version of the SEA Games is by far the most challenging because of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Chua said. “But with one SEA Games record, five new Philippine records and eight personal records established, this can be considered as a very successful campaign for Patafa.”
Pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena led the campaign with a new SEA Games record of 5.46 meters.
The other gold medalists were William Morrison (men’s shot put, 18.14 meters), Clinton Bautista (new national record 110m hurdles 13.78 seconds), Eric Cray (fifth straight 400m hurdles Games crown) and Kayla Richardson (100 meters, 11.60 seconds).
The silver medalists were Kyla Richardson (200 meters, 23.56), Hokett delos Santos (pole vault, 5 meters), Janry Ubas (long jump, 7.73 meters), Aries Toledo (decathlon, 7499), Sarah Dequinan (heptahlon), Harry Diones (triple jump, 15.87m) and Hallasgo.
Bagging bronze medals were Kayla Richardson (200 meters, 23.87), Joida Gagnao (5000m and 3000m, steeplechase), Alfrence Braza (men’s 1500m, 3:56.35), Melvin Calano (javelin, 66.86m), Sonny Wagdos (men’s 5000m, 16:39:89), Ubas (decathlon, 6977 pts), Bernalyn Bejoy, Jessel Lumapas, Edgardo Alejan, Jr. and Joyme Sequita (4×400 Mixed Relay), Jelly Paragile (100m Hurdles), Alyana Nicolas (pole vault), Robyn Brown (women’s 400m Hurdles, 56.44 seconds),
Morrison (discus throw), Evalyn Palbrica (javelin, 49.07 meters) and Bejoy, Brown, Eloise Medina and Maureen Schrijvers (4×400, Women’s Relay).
Image credits: Nonie Reyes