Filipina triathlete Claire Adorna finishes first in the triathlon event of the 2015 Southeast Asian Games in Singapore.
SINGAPORE—A nagging ankle injury couldn’t foil triathlete Claire Adorna from seizing the first gold medal of the Philippines Saturday in the 28th Southeast Asian Games.
Writhing in pain on the crucial stretch of the race, the 21-year-old summoned enough courage and blazed the trail to glory in women’s triathlon amid humid conditions at the East Coast Park here.
“I was in pain but I pushed myself hard to finish the race. This one is for the country,’’ said Adorna, tearful at the podium after clocking two hours, 13 minutes and eight seconds.
Kim Mangrobang, nearly collapsing at the finish due to exhaustion, rode a wheelchair after checking in a minute and 18 seconds later as the Filipinos completed a 1-2 conquest in the swim-bike-run test of
endurance.
READ: Triathlete Claire Adorna wins first SEA Games 2015 gold for PH
Sanruthai Arunsiri of Thailand placed third, nine minutes behind Adorna, who trained for three months in Goldcoast, Australia.
Adorna, a sports science major at the University of the Philippines, struck hard in the swim segment of the race, emerging from the water first and way ahead of the field.
George Vilog, Adorna’s coach, later rued the Incheon Asian Gamer negotiated a longer distance on sea than the other competitors.
“She swam another 100 meters while the others failed to follow the exact route of the course. But we’re not complaining. We still won the race,’’ said Vilog, a silver medalist in the 2007 Thailand Games.
Riding her bike, Adorna stormed past several opponents and was more than three minutes in front of Mangrobang and Arunsiri entering the run.
Mangrobang, saying it was part of their team strategy, suddenly slowed down on the final sequence of the race as she engaged the Thai toe-to-toe, setting up Adorna for a splendid finishing kick.
“All the sacrifices, being away from my family and the hard training, were worth it,’’ said Adorna, her entire family cheering her on the sidelines.
She’ll compete next week in the Asian Triathlon Championships in Taipei before scheduling a date with the surgeon on her left ankle.
“There’s a tear that should be operated on.’’
Philippine Olympic Committee chair and triathlon chief Tom Carrasco was visibly elated with the outcome, hoping the twin feat of Adorna and Mangrobang will be duplicated by Nikko Huelgas and Jonard Saim in the men’s race Sunday.
“This is the first gold for the country and I’m deeply honored to earn the distinction,’’ said Carrasco. “Let’s hope we duplicate this tomorrow (today).’’
Adorna’s victory was the first gold for Filipino triathletes in the SEA Games after a couple of silver performances back in 2005 Manila and 2007 held in Pattaya.