Swimmer Molina to appear in 2 Olympic events

MANILA, Philippines – Miguel Molina was given a slot in the 200m breaststroke in the Olympics, granting Southeast Asia’s best male swimmer two events in the Beijing Games. Molina was entered earlier in the 200m Individual Medley. The International Swimming Federation gave Molina a berth after recognizing his finish in the Janet Evans International Invitational held last month in Los Angeles. He clocked two minutes and 16.62 seconds to cop the silver in the event. Molina’s mark, which shattered the old Philippine record that stood at 2:16.88, surpassed the Olympic qualifying "B" standard set at 2:18.37. Molina, who was named Best Male Athlete in the last SEA Games, first qualified in the 200 Individual Medley in the 2007 World Championships held in Melbourne, Australia. This is the second time in the Olympics that Molina made it to the 200m IM and 200m breast. In the 2004 Athens Olympics, Molina also swam in the 200m freestyle and 400m IM. In Greece, Molina finished 38th in the 200m breast and 33rd in the 200m IM. Molina is the second Beijing Olympian to swim in two events after Christel Simms who qualified in the 100m and 50m free. – GMANews.TV