KUALA LUMPUR – In less than 25 seconds, the Philippines ended more than 25 years of medal drought in the light heavyweight division as a Fil-British member of the British Army scored the fastest victory in amateur boxing in the 29th Southeast Asian Games here.
John Tupas Marvin’s epic 21-second win over Malaysian Adli Hafidz Mohd Pauzi was the first medal for the Philippines since the 1999 SEA Games, where it won a bronze.
Late in the night, 200m dash winner Fil-Am Trenten Anthony Beram became the first double gold medalist for Team Philippines as he ruled the 400m run in 46.36 seconds in a down-to-the-wire finish with Thai Sunthonthuam (46.46) and Vietnam’s Quach Cong Lich (46.48).
The men’s ice hockey team, playing minus its team captain, halted Thailand, 5-4, to finish the competition with an unbeaten slate and become the first title holder of the sport introduced for the first time in the SEA Games.
With boxer Eumir Felix Marcial and the lawn bowls team also winning the golds, the Philippines hiked its medal haul to 15-18-31 (gold-silver-bronze) but remained at sixth with Malaysia still way ahead with 63-45-36 followed by Singapore (33-30-34) and Vietnam (33-23-30).
Thailand is in fourth with 25-42-45 while Indonesia has 18-23-40 tally for fifth as of 11 p.m.
Marvin’s victory, which came 21 seconds into the first round, signaled what boxing officials said was the country’s entry to the heavier divisions which could be another front where the country could strike gold in the Olympics.
“If given the chance, I’ll come back again, to win in the SEA Games, then in the Asian Games and then in the Olympics,” said Marvin, who is tough as an army man could be in four years as member of the British Army.
The light heavyweight division was a source of medals for the Philippines with Raymundo Suizo winning back-to-back gold medals at the 1989 and 1991 SEA Games. Emmanuel Legaspi claimed a bronze in 1995 and Ernesto Coronel bagged a pair of bronzes in 1997 and 1999.
Marvin’s win came after the Herculean victory of Marcial in the middleweight, giving the Philippines two golds and one silver, which came with the loss of Mario Fernandez to Chatchai Butdee of Thailand in the bantamweight class. (Related story on Page 18)
Marcial won the other gold, against Thai Pathomsak Kuttiya, 5-0, to give the boxing team two golds in a tie with Thailand at the close of competitions where only six men’s boxing events were contested this year.
Beram, meanwhile, guns for his third gold when he teams up with Eric Shaun Cray, the 400m hurdles champion who will also seek redemption from his century dash loss to a Malaysian runner Wednesday as he guns for his second gold after his 400m hurdles victory.
After missing the past four editions of the SEAG, the country’s lawn bowls quartet of Emmanuel Protacio, Ronald Lising, Leoncio Carreon and Cuarte Robert Guari edged heavyweight Malaysia, 16-14, in the finals to clinch the gold medal in their first SEA Games action since 2007.
The men’s ice hockey team, meanwhile, outscored the Thais, 3-0, in the first period and fended off a late charge by Thailand which reduced the lead to 4-5 in the second period to secure the victory.
The game was delayed for about two hours as the Phl team protested a game suspension slapped on its team captain Steven Fuglister in their previous game against Malaysia.
The technical officials ruled out the protest.
Late in the night, the athletics team was still in the track and field stadium, competing for golds in final events still being played at presstime.
John Rey Ubas took the bronze in the long jump over a distance of 7.75 meters won by Vietnam at 7.83, with Indonesia third at 7.78.
Still seeing action were veteran Narcisa Atienza, who began her campaign in the women’s heptathlon.
The victories by the boxers, the ice hockey and lawn bowls teams and Beram came on the heels of conquests on the tracks a day earlier when Aries Toledo defeated Asian Games king Suttisak Singkom of Thailand in the decathlon and Beram zoomed to a golden finish in the 200m dash.