RP dragons cap six-gold sweep

The national dragon boat team swept the last three gold medals in the traditional boat race to capture the overall championship in the sport in the 23rd Southeast Asian Games yesterday.

The RP bets ruled the men’s 10 a-side (500 m race), the women’s 10 a—side (500m race) and the men’s 20 a-side (500m race) to complete their six-gold sweep at La Mesa Dam.

"They deserved it, they trained hard for this and we are very happy of the outcome," said Philippine Dragon Boat Federation (PDBF) chairman Benjamin Ramos.

It was a superb performance by the RP rowers, who could only churn out a one-gold, one-silver production in the last SEA Games in Vietnam two years ago and one bronze medal in the 1999 Brunei Games.

In the first morning race, the RP’s men 10 a-side seized control early then thwarted Myanmar and Indonesia’s bid at the halfway point with a blistering finish. The Philippines clocked 1:51.91 to beat Myanmar, which came in second with a 1:55.73 clocking. Indonesia took the bronze in1:58.38.

The women’s 10 a-side team matched that feat as it dominated their own 500-meter race, clocking 2:09.36 to bag the gold medal. Myanmar finished five seconds slower in 2:14.19 for silver while Indonesia checked in 2:14.19 to nip Vietnam for the bronze medal.

The men’s 20 a-side completed the sweep as it blitzed past Myanmar and Indonesia in the final 200 meters to pull off the victory.

"That was really the strategy, we wait for them to get tired then we make our move," said PDBF technical director and national head coach Nestor Ilagan.

The Philippines clocked 1:43.84, edging Myanmar’s 1:44.33 for the gold. Indonesia took the bronze with a 1:47.65 clocking.

"When they went 5-0, I thought there might be a big chance for a sweep. This is a big honor for the country and we are very happy to be supporting them," said Samboy Lim, former professional basketball player and project director for San Mig Light, the official sponsor of the RP Dragons.