Rower snares lone gold; Phl stays at sixth

PALEMBANG – Filipino superstars found their ego deflated in various fronts and it took a rower from the distant shores of West Java, 427 kilometers from here, to save Team Philippines from embarrassment past the halfway mark yesterday of the 26th Southeast Asian Games.

Nestor Cordova a 34-year-old from Murcia, Negros Occidental, summoned all his strength in the halfway mark of the 2,000m race to win the single sculls event in seven minutes, 18.810 seconds, almost three seconds in front of a Thai rower.

That was the only thing to crow about in the day as host Indonesia continued its relentless drive to maintain the overall lead, relegating Thailand and Vietnam into a battle for second, and the athletes of Malaysia and Singapore into a showdown for fourth.

Indonesia was well ahead with a haul of 87-65-69 gold-silver-bronze medals as it firmed up its position at the top of the race among 11 nations. At the end of the day, Thailand found itself in third overall (52-41-59), its second position assumed by Vietnam (54-55-59) as indigenous and newly-introduced sports.

Singapore is way behind at third with 27-31-46, but its fourth overall position is also being threatened by Malaysia (27-23-44).

The Philippines is now 12 behind the two countries with 15-28-34 although sports officials hope for a rebound in chess (3), tennis (3) soft tennis (2), weightlifting (2), wrestling (1) and boxing (4).

That prediction appeared dim just as quickly as deputy chef de mission Romeo Magat announced it the other day.

The chess team missed the gold yesterday, with John Paul Gomez settling for the silver and Darwin Laylo the bronze in blindfold chess won by Vietnam.

The archers produced two silver medals from Jennifer Chan and Earl Benjamin Jazi in the individual compound.

Efren “Bata” Reyes also settled for the bronze in carom singles.

Biboy Rivera, the Asian Games gold medalist, and Frederick Ong teamed up to win the silver in the bowling doubles.

The rowing team also netted a bronze in the day courtesy of the pair of Alvin Amposta and rookie Edgar Ilas in men’s light doubles.

Swimming, which expected four gold medals, had another bronze from Dorothy Hong in the 100m backstroke and Jessie Lacuna, Lee Dhill Anderssen, Ryan Arabejo and Jose Joaquin Gonzales in the 4x200m relay.

In fencing, Michelle Brozula won the bronze in the saber individual, and combined with Leny Otoday and Jenny Nicanor for the team bronze.

In Jakarta and in West Java, Filipino bets fought gallantly on other fronts, scoring twin wins in basketball, hitting two silvers in archery, striking another silver in bowling and knocking down a bronze in fencing.

The golfers stayed in chase for the medals while the judokas and the wushu artists braced to fight for glory in their respective events kicking off today and tomorrow, respectively.

Returning to their quarters with sad tales to tell were lady cyclist Marites Bitbit and the lady bowlers.

Bemedalled archer Jennifer Chan narrowly lost the female individual compound championship to Myanmar’s Aung Ngeain and so did Earl Yap the male individual compound gold to Indon Igp Puruhito.

Filipina fencers Johanna Franquelli, Lenita Reyes and Jilyn Nicanor salvaged a bronze medal in women’s team saber a day after Walbert Mendoza captured the country’s first fencing gold in the individual saber.

The men’s epee team, made up of Avelino Victorino Jr. Almario Vizcayno, Arman Bernal and Joshua Paunil, crashed out in the quarterfinals, bowing to the Vietnamese, 34-45.

At the Jaya Ancol Bowling Center, singles gold medal winner Frederick Ong teamed up with Asian Games champion Biboy Rivera to get the silver in doubles.

Ong and Rivera hit 2490 to the 2555 of the gold-medal winning Malaysian pair of Adrian Ang and Liew Kien Liang. – With report from Nelson Beltran