2nd most productive SEA Games day for PH: 15 golds

AX KICK. The Philippines’ men’s poomsae squad, made up of Rodolfo Reyes Jr., Rafael Mella and Dustin Mella, show off their gold-medal winning form. —LEO SABANGAN II

Philippine athletics bets delivered, its warriors on the mat dominated and Margielyn Didal was unstoppable on the skateboarding course — and afterwards during her victory presscon — as they highlighted the country’s second most productive day that practically put away the overall title with still five days of play left in the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

Kristina Knott reset the 200-meter dash record twice on Saturday at New Clark City stadium with Olympic medal hopeful EJ Obiena refusing to be outdone as he also established a new pole vault mark for two of the Philippines’ 15 golds on Day 8 that put the Filipinos out of reach by anyone even with still 200 or so events left to be decided before the curtains fall on the 30th edition of this region’s Games on Wednesday.

Knott, who will try to become the region’s fastest woman on Sunday when she guns for a double in the centerpiece 100-meters, clocked 23.01 seconds in the final, eclipsing the new mark of 23.07 she set in the heats in the morning, before Obiena vaulted to a height of 5.45 meters that now stands as a new Games mark. The old record in the men’s pole vault was 5.35 held by Thailand’s Porranot Purahong established in the 2017 edition in Malaysia.

“I see my prayers being answered,” the 24-year-old Knott said.

Paddlers also chipped in their share to the growing Philippine medal haul, which was 84-62-62 (gold-silver-bronze) as of 7:27 p.m. on Saturday, with Cris Nievarez winning the lightweight single sculls for men, Joanie Delgaco and Melcah Jen Caballero ruling the lightweight doubles sculls and Hermie Macaranas triumphing in the 200-meter men’s singles of canoeing at Malawaan Park in Subic.

Taekwondo jins harvested four poomsae gold medals, with Rodolfo Reyes Jr. and Jocel Lyn Ninobla sweeping the men’s and women’s individual recognized events, respectively, and Jeodan Dominguez annexing the individual freestyle class. Reyes later teamed up with Dustin Mella and Raphael Mella for the team recognized gold medal.