Triathletes, rower to train abroad

Triathletes Nikko Huelgas and Kim Mangrobang are bound for Rio Maior, Portugal, while paddler Hermie Macaranas will train in Budapest, Hungary, in a spirited bid to win medals in the 17th Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

Huelgas and Mangrobang, the country’s top male and female triathletes, are aiming to improve their clockings in the swim-bike-run discipline under the tutelage of hi-performance coach Sergio Santos.

Joining them in the 31-day training camp from Aug. 20 to Sept. 21 are Claire Adorna and John Chicano. The 22-year-old Huelgas ruled the men’s elite race in the recent Philippine National Games while Mangrobang, also 22, won in the distaff side.

“[The training] will make them competitive against the best athletes in the Asian Games,” said Philippine Olympic Committee chair Tom Carrasco.

He added the 18-year-old from Bautista, Pangasinan, will have a brief stopover in another camp in Moscow, Russia, on his way to Incheon.