FIL-AMERICAN Eric Cray will be the country’s lone representative in the World Athletics Championships in Moscow on Aug. 10 to 18.
Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association president Go Teng Kok yesterday said he believes the Florida-based hurdler has what it takes to compete on the sport’s biggest stage.
“I saw him perform in India (Asian Athletics Championship) and he timed 51.86 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles, which is not bad considering that he arrived just a day before competitions,” said Go.
A Vietnamese hurdler won the Southeast Asian Games gold medal two years ago with a time of 51.45 seconds. The Games record stands at 49.76 seconds.
Go, who will also attend the International Association of Athletics Federations congress, said Cray’s personal best is 50.46 seconds, also the Philippine record.
Former Asian long jump champion Marestella Torres was supposed to join the lineup but she filed a leave of absence early this month reportedly after learning she’s pregnant.
The Philippines is banking on athletics to deliver the goods in the coming Burma (Myanmar) SEA Games. The Filipinos finished with just two golds two years ago in Indonesia.