MANILA, Philippines - Fil-Canadian Zion Corrales-Nelson broke Lydia De Vega Mercado’s junior record in the 400-meter and the national mark during the British Columbia High School Track and Field Championship in Langley recently.
The 15-year-old Corrales-Nelson clocked 54.64 seconds to eclipse the national meet mark of 54.65 seconds which Jenny Rosales set in the UAAP last year and the 33-year-old junior record of 54.75 seconds posted by former Asia’s track queen Lydia de Vega-Mercado.
Fil-Brit Andrew Pirrie, a track and field consultant of the Phl Sports Commission, broke the news in his blog pinoyathletics.info, although he added that the new marks were still being verified.
Pirrie said it was noticeable that Corrales-Nelson has shattered the record at a very young age while Rosales and de Vega-Mercado were 19 and 17 when they made their respective record-breaking runs.
Initially, Corrales-Nelson was just eyeing to make the qualifying criteria set by the world athletics federation for the World Juniors of 55.16 seconds.
She is expected to go for the 53.71-second mark, which will qualify her to the national team seeing action in next year’s Singapore Southeast Asian Games since the time will be good for a bronze medal in the biennial meet.