Pinay triathlete wins bronze in Malaysia

MANILA, Philippines – Lea Coline Langit, the Philippines’ third-ranked female triathlete, salvaged a bronze in the recent Port Dickson International Triathlon in Malaysia. Langit, together with Macau's Hoi Loi and Southeast Asian (SEA) Games back-to-back gold medalist Kimbeley Yap of Malaysia, paced the race until the first two kilometers of the 10K run where Yap began to fall behind. Hoi, the eventual winner, surged ahead after another two kilometers and established a 100-meter advantage before coasting to victory as fatigue began to tell on Langit, who had to give up a possible berth to the 2007 SEA Games to focus on her studies. Hoi clocked in at two hours 15 minutes and 27 seconds while Langit, a recent Sports Studies graduate of De La Salle, checked in at 2:20:54 in this Asia Cup event. Yap, an Olympic Solidarity scholar groomed for a possible stint to the Beijing Olympics, did not finish. Langit, who had shifted her training into high gear only the past two months as one of the beneficiaries of the Philippine Sports Commission-sponsored training program, was beaten to the runner-up honors by the late charging Dinan of Singapore (2:15:55). Tom Carrasco, president of the Triathlon Association of the Philippines and Asian representative to International Triathlon Union, said, “Our goal is at least a podium finish in every competition our triathletes and duathletes see action." The other Filipino triathlete who competed was Joash Serrano, who placed sixth in the field of 18 juniors, 12 of whom were from Hong Kong. “Napagtulungan", said coach Melvin Fausto. – GMANews.TV