MAASIN CITY, Leyte—Anjelica de Josef of Lezo, Aklan, collected three golds on the track as Jrict Ray Talicug of Cebu City and Karen Janario of Leyte Sports Academy-Smart crowned themselves the fastest athletes yesterday in the Philippine Sports Commission-Philippine Olympic Committee Batang Pinoy Visayas leg here.
Talicug, 13, topped the boys 100-meter dash in 11.82 seconds, while Janario ruled the girls side with a time of 13.05 seconds to become not only the fastest athletes in the meet but also two of the few multiple gold winners at Southern Leyte Sports Complex here.
Talicug also claimed the 400-meter top prize, while Janario, a scholar at LSA, a successful athletic club based in Tacloban City, also snared the 100m hurdles gold.
But De Josef seized the spotlight after winning the girls 400m to add to her victories in 1,500m and 800m events. The 14-year-old De Josef vaulted into national track scene when she reset the Palarong Pambansa record in elementary 800m running barefoot two years ago.
Ivan Miguel Santos of Cebu City won his second gold after taking the boys’ 1,500m to go with his 5,000m triumph, which was the first event of this week-long meet.
Cebu City went on a romp in several fronts outside of its swimming haul of 26 gold medals. It also dominated athletics, taekwondo and karatedo and accounted for 61 golds, 38 silvers and 20 bronzes so far.
Bohol Province is far second with a 22-14-10 count which was largely anchored on its 21-gold harvest in swimming.
Bacolod City leaned on John Michael Castro and Emy Rose Dael to land three gold medals in table tennis at Asuncion gym. Castro ruled boys singles, Dael girls singles before they eventually clinched mixed double title.
Host Maasin City broke no sweat in scooping four golds in soft tennis at Sunken Garden in Zarraga—it was the only team which fielded athletes. Later it secured a hard-earned gold after its mixed futsal team defeated Baybay B, 2-0, at Badian Gym.
Also at Sunken Garden, Iloilo edged Cebu City for the girls softball gold.
Over at Pugaling gym, Iloilo Province collected five gold medals in pencak silat. Aklan and Iloilo City each garnered three wins.
Negros Occidental tied Cebu City in taekwondo with five victories each at Maasin City gym. Neg Occidental jins Stephanie Marie Lamayo won in girls finweight, Kathleen Dinsay in girls flyweight, Julienne Bermeji in girls featherweight, Caroline Espinosa in girls lightweight and John Michael Casana in boys bantamweight.
Cebu City scored through Kyle John Flores in boys lightweight, Sal Luigi Estrada in boys featherweight, Francis Louise Reyes in boys flyweight, James Louise Callino in boys finweight and Zozen Prajes in girls heavyweight.
Over at Maasin Bus Terminal, LSA qualified three boxers into the semifinals with Ramil Pingol in ant weight, Lester Carl Oledan in minimum weight, and Diether Casida. Casida knocked out Cebu’s Christian Monilar to advance in light mosquito.
Also making the medal round in boxing were local boy Louie Jay Forzado in kiddie weight, who will take on Jefre Jiminez of Cebu City; Joseph Novero Jr. of Bacolod City, who will face Pingol; Sogod, Southern Leyte’s Shen Kaduyong, who moved up to face Oledan; Lloyd Jabes Antoque of Tagbilaran and Seos Vicente of Mandaue City who advanced in powder weight following a third-round TKO win over Wince Bretly Abas of LSA.