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11 Palaro athletics records fall in Laguna
Jomar E. Udtohan (Bib 494) of San Rafael, Bulacan and eldest son of fish ball vendors established new Palarong Pambansa records and brought home five gold medals. He studies at San Sebastian College - Recoletos in Manila and represented the National Capital Region in the 2014 Palaro. Palarong Pambansa 2014 official photo via official Facebook page
Eleven new Palarong Pambansa athletics records—nine of them in the secondary level boys division—were set this week in the 2014 Palarong Pambansa in Sta. Cruz, Laguna. The most prolific of the record-breakers are Jomar Udtohan, Jaime Immanuel Mejia, Bryan Jay Pacheco, and Kevin Capangpangan.
Udtohan dominated five events, including the 100-meter dash where he zoomed past the competition at 10.8 seconds. He was simply unstoppable as he established new records and earned golds in the 200-meter dash (21.8 seconds) and 400-meter run (48.7 seconds).
"Mabilis ang patak ng kanyang mga paa," said Joselito Gando, his coach, praising Udtohan's "natural speed" in a phone interview with GMA News Online.
“Maganda po ang kondisyon ng aking katawan at maayos po training ko. Sa trials pa lang tiningnan ko na at naging confident po ako na manalo,” added Udtohan in the same interview.
Udtohan also contributed to the golden, record-setting victories of National Capital Region (NCR) squad. He was the third runner the 4x100-meter relay, and the last in the 4x400-meter relay.
“May tiwala po ako sa mga kakampi ko,” he said.
Gando said his student comes from a rough background. He hails from San Rafael, Bulacan, while his parents both work fish ball vendors. The sprinter studied at the San Sebastian College high school and resides in a nearby dormitory in Manila, but has to travel to the Marikina Sports Complex for training.
Udtohan is slated to compete in the 100-meter dash and 200-meter race of the Philippine National Games later this month in Metro Manila.
Other record-breakers
Mejia, Udtohan's teammate from the University of the Philippines Integrated School (UPIS), ruled the 110-meter hurdles and 400-meter hurdles. In addition to the two hurdles golds, Mejia also earned a silver in the finals of the 400-meter run.
Distance runner Kevin Capangpangan from Iligan City in Northern Mindanao reigned in the 1500-meter race and 5000-meter run. He set a new 1500 record time of 4:05.8 and was 16 seconds short of the 5-K time barrier of 15:38.40 Cresencio Cabal set way back in 1998.
Capangpangan was not alone in toppling the 1500-run record of Peter Sabado (4:06) 20 years ago in 1994. Gilbert Rutaquio crossed the finish line with a time of 4:05.9 and earned a silver.
High jump specialist Alexis Soqueño from the Western Visayas soared 1.92 meters for his golden, record-setting performance.
Bryan Jay Pacheco claimed two golds when he set new meet records for the javelin throw (62.47 meters) and shot put (15.32 meters). He also earned a silver in the discus throw.
The other record-breaker in the javelin throw was Joshua Vincent Patalud who won the silver.
Palaro Athletics events record-breakers.
The other record-breaker in the javelin throw was Joshua Vincent Patalud who won the silver.
Patalud was the third to execute his throws and he broke the record on his first try. In a phone interview with GMA News Online, he said he was confident he could set a new record. "I was already throwing over 60 meters in training," he said.
Patalud will be a fourth year high school student at De La Salle Zobel in the next school year opening this June, so he will have another crack at setting a new javelin throw record in the next Palaro and hopefully claim the gold.
The 1500-meter runs in the girls' division provided the gold mining opportunities for Jie Anne Calis and Camila Tubiano.
Tracksters Mary Anthony Diesto, Leah Joan Creer, and Edwin Requillas III earned multiple golds.
Karyll Clarisa Enrico and Marizel Buer earned two golds each.
Javelin and discus thrower Jobert Bartolome claimed a gold and a bronze. — JDL, GMA News
