Marestella eyes one more shot at glory

Marestella Torres-Sunang Photo by ROMY HOMILLADA / INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Long jump queen Marestella Torres-Sunang believes she can squeeze one more Asian-level performance from her body—and at 37, the three-time Olympian will test that faith when mixes it up with the best in the continent in the Asian Games in Indonesia.

“There are still those who continue supporting not just me but the whole national track and field team,” said Sunang, referring to Ayala Corp., which provided the national team a home and state-of-the-art training center at Vermosa Sports Hub in Cavite.

“Besides, I still love to compete,” said Sunang, one of the country’s best hopes for a gold medal in the event set Aug. 18-Sept. 2 in Jakarta and Palembang in Indonesia. Her national mark of 6.72 meters she set in the Kazakhstan Open in 2016 is actually better than Maria Natalia Londa’s gold medal winning 6.55 effort in the 2014 Asiad in South Korea.

Sunang added that the proximity of the Vermosa Sports Hub to her home in Bacoor aids her buildup.

She added that since the Vermosa oval is the only IAAF-certified track in the country, she and her teammates can now accurately monitor their performance based on international standards.