Palabrica rips national junior javelin mark

FAR Eastern University’s Evalyn Palabrica set a new national junior record in javelin as Team UAAP-Philippines stayed in sixth place with a two gold-three silver-three bronze medal haul in the 16th Asean University Games Sunday in Vientiane, Laos.

Palabrica—who helped power the Lady Tamaraws to a record ninth straight UAAP athletics crown—flung the spear to a distance of 45.43 meters, beating the 44.73m she set in the varsity meet last week.

Playing in her first international meet, Palabrica shattered twice in one week the 14-year national junior record of 44.54m held by Rosie Villarito, which she set in the 1998 National Open.

The feat, though, was just good enough for a silver in the biennial regional tournament as Thailand’s Natta Nachan narrowly captured the gold at 45.79 meters.

Taekwondo remained as the best performer for Team UAAP with University of Santo Tomas’ Paul Romero and University of the Philippines’ Gio de Dios picking up a silver each to add to the gold medals won by UST mainstays Christian Al dela Cruz and Ernest John Mendoza.

Romero settled for a runner-up finish in men’s bantamweight after bowing to Laos’ Sonexay Mangkheua, 8-4, while De Dios also fell short in the finals against Thailand’s Chodsuthan Chanteerawong, 9-1, in the lightweight match.

Dela Cruz, the reigning UAAP taekwondo MVP, copped the welterweight gold following an 8-4 triumph over Vietnam’s Pham Huu Son on Friday.

Mendoza won on the same day via disqualification over Laos’ Sawatvilay Phimmasone in the middleweight title round. Jasmine W. Payo