2025 SEA Games: Gymnast Aleah Finnegan, jiujitsu’s Kimberly Custodio, Dean Roxas add golds to PH medal haul

Gymnast Aleah Finnegan and jiujitsu athletes Kimberly Custodio and Dean Roxas contributed to the Philippines’ gold medal haul at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games on Thursday in Thailand.

Olympian Finnegan claimed gold in the women’s vault finals, but it took a review and re-computation requested by Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham Tolentino before she was officially announced as the winner.

Custodio defeated her Thai counterpart in the finals to win gold in the jiujitsu ne-waza women’s 49kg, while Roxas topped the jiujitsu men’s 85kg event.

Olympic swimmer Kayla Sanchez added two silver medals from the women’s 50m backstroke and 200m freestyle events, supplementing her gold from the 4x100m freestyle relay on Wednesday.

Haylee Garcia earned silver in the women’s uneven bars, while Clarence Sarza fell to Thailand’s Patcharakan Poolkerd to take silver in the women’s 46kg category. Yman Xavier Baluyo also claimed silver after losing to Dinh Tung Dang of Vietnam in the jiujitsu men’s 69kg ne-waza finals.

Gymnast Justin Ace de Leon captured bronze in both the men’s rings and men’s floor exercise.

Combat sports contributed most of the country’s Thursday haul, with bronze medals from Marc Alexander Lim in jiujitsu ne-waza men’s 69kg, Vito Luzuriaga in jiujitsu ne-waza men’s 85kg, Felix Calipusan, Jeremy Nopre, and Jordan Macalipay in the karate kata men’s team, Baby Jhen Buzon and Mariane Mariano in the jiujitsu duo classic women’s team, Kurt Barbosa in taekwondo men’s under-54kg, Kaila Napolis in jiujitsu ne-waza women’s 48kg, and Leah Jhane and Ma. Jeanalane Lopez in judo women’s ju-no-kata.

Other bronze medalists included Mark Louwel Valderama in the men’s cross-country eliminator, Mark Griffin, Eva Dela Torre, Frenchesca Coo, and Derek Hewitt in the open wakeboard team, and Susan Ramadan in the women’s 1500m.

Demo sport mixed martial arts also contributed medals, with Geli Bulaong winning gold in the modern 60kg category, and bronze medals going to Gina Araos in special value modern 54kg, Jean Claude Saclag in men’s modern 65kg, Denzel John Alipio in men’s modern 60kg, and Giezel Daya in women’s traditional 54kg.

In team sports, the Philippine Women’s National Football Team booked a semifinal spot after drubbing Malaysia, 6–0. Gilas Pilipinas 3x3 Men, meanwhile, missed the podium for the first time after falling to Malaysia, 21–19, in the battle for third place.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News