Southeast Asian Games – Soft Tennis – Olympic Tennis Complex, Phnom Penh, Cambodia – May 10, 2023 Philippines’ Joseph Abas Arcilla celebrates after winning gold medal in the men’s singles REUTERS/Cindy Liu
PHNOM PENH—Halfway through the contest, Joseph Arcilla felt a sharp spasm in his legs, one could force an average competitor to just walk off the court and abandon everything amid the scorching heat.
But Arcilla is no lesser mortal and willed himself to go beyond his own boundaries to claim the lone gold medal for Team Philippines on Wednesday at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
“I suffered from cramps and I could hardly stand. It was mental toughness that kept me going,’’ said Arcilla. “Thanks to our psychologist who always reminded us to think positive every time we go into court.’’
The 35-year-old’s regular trip to his sports psychologist simply did the trick.
“I take my sessions with our (sports) psychologist seriously. When I was in pain, I remember the things we always discuss, particularly about the power of positive thinking and mental toughness,’’ said Arcilla, the younger brother of retired Filipino tennis ace Johnny Arcilla.
He quickly grabbed the upperhand in the first set, 4-2, only to let Anugerah equalize going into the third set, before the Filipino swept the next two frames and saved the Philippine delegation from a near gold shutout.
Bambi Zoleta wasn’t as fortunate after dropping a 4-3 decision against Indonesia’s Dwi Rahayu Pitri in the women’s gold singles match.
Arcilla’s gold was the third for the national soft tennis squad after topping the women’s team event and the women’s individual doubles
