Records broken as PHL breaches 200-mark in medal count

A week into the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games and records are continuously being broken in the biennial meet.

Kristina Knott set a new Southeast Asian record early in the day when she registered 23.07 seconds in the heats round of the 200-meter race. The previous record was held by Thailand's Supavadee Khawpeag with 23.30 seconds. Knott also broke the national record at 23.35 seconds which was held by Lydia de Vega for 33 years.

Knott did not settle there and broke her own record in the finals to capture the gold in the women's 200-meter dash, with a time record of 23.01 seconds.

Another athletics star, Olympic qualifier EJ Obiena, set a new record in the region as he cleared the 5.45m mark in the pole vault competition. He exceeded the previous record of Thailand's Porranot Purahong of 5.35m.

PHL stars continue to shine

Philippine sports stars Margielyn Didal and Chezka Centeno continued the country's gold rush, which tallied at 17 at the end of the day.

Didal bagged her second gold medal in the women's street skate competition, while billiards player Chezka Centeno pocketed her first gold in the 2019 edition of the SEA Games in the 10-ball pool singles.

In a battle of Pinoys for the gold medal, Francis Alcantara and Jeson Patrombon defeated the duo of Ruben Gonzales Jr. and Treat Huey in the tennis men's doubles event. Didal and Centeno also defeated compatriots Christiana Means and Rubilen Amit, respectively, to complete the Philippines' 1-2 finish in their respective events.

FULL COVERAGE: 30th Southeast Asian Games on GMA News Online

Meanwhile, combat sports also contributed to the country's gold rush, with the women's fencing team epee and Junna Tsukii of karatedo adding one each. Filipino jins showed might anew in taekwondo as they bagged four golds in Saturday's poomsae events.

Water sports such as rowing, canoe, and sailing combined for a total of four golds to today's haul. Cris Nievarez and the duo of Joanie Delgaco and Melcah Caballero scored golds for rowing, while Hermie Macaranas captured one for canoe. Lester Tayong and Emerson Villena finished first in the International 470 event for sailing.

Gymnast Daniela dela Pisa snagged her own gold in the hoop apparatus event while Bien Zoleta got her own in soft tennis.

Reaching the 200-medal mark

The Philippines exceeded 200 medals today, many of them coming from the haul of combat and water sports.

Swimming copped two silver and two bronze medals today, while taekwondo captured four silver medals in the poomsae events. The Karatedo delegation achieved a silver and two bronze medals in today's competitions.

The national sailing team also chipped in the medal count today, with a gold, silver, and bronze in their hand.

Road to the podium

With the preliminary rounds of many team sports coming to a close, some Philippine teams are advancing to the medal matches.

Gilas Pilipinas demolished Myanmar by 69 points, 136-67, before heading to the semi-finals match on Monday.

The women's volleyball team, despite falling short against Indonesia in four sets, will also advance to the bronze medal match.

The Philippine Ice Hockey team, meanwhile, has been dethroned by Singapore, 4-3, in the semis, but will have a chance for the bronze tomorrow when they play Malaysia. — Justin Kenneth Carandang/DVM, GMA News