Manipol Open’s 2nd double-gold medalist

After winning the 10,000-meter run Thursday, Mercedita Manipol ruled the 5,000m yesterday to become only the second double-gold winner with one day left in the National Open track and field championships at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.

The 24-year-old veteran of the 2003 Vietnam SEA Games was simply too fast, too strong for her rivals.

Manipol broke loose in the first 500 meters and finished the 12-1/2 lap race in 17 minutes 27.84 seconds, more than two minutes ahead of silver medalist Hazel Madamba (19:45.25) and almost five minutes faster than bronze winner Lea Tesorio (21:51.87).

As Manipol ran her final lap, her closest pursuers, including Madamba and Tesorio, had at least three more laps to finish. Manipol was already being interviewed by the media by the time the last of her competitors crossed the finish line.

"Sa first four laps pa lang tatlo na ang na-overtake ko. Sa last two laps naman, nadaanan ko na sila lahat," said Manipol who won the 10,000m the other day with a time of 36:21.54. She won the bronze in Vietnam with a time in 34.58.0.

Her best time in the 5,000-m was 16 minutes, 40 seconds but she failed to come near it because of the size or level of the field.

"Kaya naman siguro pero mahirap dahil wala ngang kahatakan," said Manipol, who also won the 10,000 and 5,000-m runs in last year’s National Open. She will compete in these two events in the SEA Games in November.

Aside from the 4-foot-11 Manipol, only Arnel Ferrera has won two gold medals heading into the final day of the event, which drew a bunch of runners from Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and Brunei.

Ferrera, of Ateneo, won the men’s discus throw (44.81 m) last Thursday then added the hammer throw gold the other day with a throw of 56.74 meters.

Other gold winners yesterday were SEA Games back-to-back gold medalist Ernie Candelario in the men’s 400-m (48.17), Nixon Mas of the Navy in men’s shot put (13.78m), Christian Mendoza in boys‘ 400-m (50.29) and Sharon Jizmundo in girls’ 400-m (58.65).

Candelario was way off his personal best of 46.65 set during the 2002 Busan Asian Games and pointed to a chest muscle injury, which he sustained while lifting weights in training, as the reason.

Seven other gold medals were being disputed as of presstime.