HONG KONG—Ana Bhianca Espenilla and Jerico Cadag won silver and bronze medals at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships.
The 19-year-old javelin thrower from Tigao Island, Masbate, Espenilla had struggled through her first five attempts, her best mark stuck at 47.71 meters, far from medal contention.
But on her sixth and final throw, Espenilla unleashed a personal-best of 52.20 meters at the Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground, catapulting her to the silver medal and the biggest podium finish of her young career.
“Ang mga una kong throws wala talaga kaya nagulat ako sa huling throw ko. Sabi ko lang sa sarili ko na bahala na, itatapon ko na lang ito kaya hindi ko talaga inexpect na mag-52 (meters),’’ said Espenilla.
The breakthrough gave her a timely confidence boost ahead of the World U20 Athletics Championships in Oregon on August 5–9, where she will join Jeralyn Rodriguez (400m), Naomi Cesar (800m), and Ivan Cabanda (400m hurdles).
The 18-year-old Cadag proved his mettle in the men’s 3000m steeplechase final. Against a field of 13 runners, Cadag clocked 9:35.10 to clinch the bronze medal behind India’s Nikhil Chandrashekar (9:25.44) and Japan’s Yuu Kato (9:27.30).
With Espenilla’s silver and Cadag’s bronze, the Philippine athletics squad supported by the Philippine Sports Commission closed the meet with two medals in a resounding way.
