Basketball, arnis, wrestling, kickboxing bring PHL's gold medal haul up to 57

The Philippines upped its gold medal total up to 57 after wins in multiple events on Tuesday in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia.

Leading the way was the Philippine national men’s basketball team, Gilas Pilipinas, which completed its redemption bid by beating a reinforced Cambodia team playing at home, 80-69, in the men’s 5x5 basketball finals to reclaim the familiar men’s basketball gold medal that it lost in the previous edition of the SEA Games in Hanoi, Vietnam last year.

Arnis delivered two gold medals with Crisamuel Delfin winning the men’s individual anyo non-traditional open weapon event to follow up the gold copped by Trixie Lofranco in the women’s event earlier in the day.

Ronil Tubog, meanwhile, defeated Indonesia’s Zainal Abidin, 3-1, to rule the men’s freestyle 61kg event in the SEA Games wrestling competitions. Earlier, Alvin Lobreguito also ruled the men's freestyle 57-kg event as wrestling delivered two golds on the day.

In kickboxing, Gretel De Paz also beat an Indonesian foe, Susanti Ndapataka, to claim the gold in the women’s low kick -56kg. Gina Iniong Araos, meanwhile, copped a silver in the women’s kick light -55kg class.

The Philippine national women’s cricket team also clinched a silver in the women’s T10.

The 57 gold medals cleared the country’s gold total from the previous edition of the biennial games, which stood at 52.

—JMB, GMA Integrated News