CAPAS, Tarlac – High jumper Leonard Grospe soared and roared to a record-win in the ICTSI Philippine Athletic Championships on Friday, June 12, at the New Clark City Athletic Stadium here.
Just over a month after setting a new national and personal standard of 2.22 meters of the NCAA Season 101 trackfest on May 5 at the same arena, the lean and lanky Grospe did it again with a remarkable leap of 2.23 meters.
Feeling ambitious, the 33rd Thailand Southeast Asia Games bronze medalist raised the bar to 2.25 but could go no further as coach Sean Guevarra, who held the old record of 2.17 meters that stood for 19 years until Grospe broke it for the first time in the 2024 edition of the meet with a 2.20 jump, was proudly watching.
It marked a night when Paris Olympian Lauren Hoffman completed a hurdles golden double with a close victory in the 100-meter hurdles in 13.55 seconds, relegating reigning 33rd Southeast Asian Games champion Dina Aulia to second place (13.63), and Army’s Jelly Diane Paragile to third (14.16) in the competition co-presented by the BCDA and New Clark City.
Two-time SEA Games men’s 110-meter hurdles gold medalist Clinton Kingsley Bautista, a native of neighboring Camiling, Tarlac, also recaptured his title in 14.26 seconds, nosing out up and coming young teammate Tochukwu Okolo (14.43) while Papua New Guinea’s Robert Oa (14.51) placed third.
Sharing the limelight was Fil-Am newcomer Gabe Borado, who stunned a tough field that included national athletes Mico del Prado and Frederick Ramirez in storming to victory in the men’s 400-meter hurdles in 47.05 seconds.
The son of Asia’s former premier 400-meter runner and now national coach Isidro del Prado, the son clocked 47.29 seconds for silver and Francis Patanpatan of Pinoy Athletics had bronze (47.79) in the championships sponsored by CEL Logistics Inc. and UAAGI Auto Group Inc.
Joining the the list of golden newcomers early Saturday morning was another Fil-Am Amanda Javellana, who, like Borado is backed by FILAM Sports, in ruling the women’s hammer throw with a heave of 51.12 meters.
Javellana, 18, whose parents hail from Bacolod, Negros Oriental before transferring to the US, actually saw action for the country in the last 33rd Thailand SEA Games, finishing fifth in the hammer throw (51.97).
“Sobrang masaya ako (ma-break ang record) kasi eto po yung standard sa last Asian Jumps,” noted Grospe, referring to the winning jump of 2.23 meters by Qatar’s by Mutaz Aissa M. Barsham of the meet held last month held in Chongqing, China.
“Actually yung target namin this year is 2.25 kasi nakikita namin sa preparation namin during training na capable siya mag-jump ng ganun kataas,” Guevarra said.
He added that with Grospe’s better overall physical conditioning “we aim to stretch that to as high as 2.30 meters para lumakas pa yung kanyang explosiveness.”
The coach was hopeful that he and his prized ward could either train overseas if not have an intensive training camp to hone the athlete’s overall technique as part of his preparations for the 20th Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September.
Hoffman was pleased in completing a sweep of the hurdles she last did in the 2024 edition held at the Philsports Complex oval in Pasig City, highlighted by setting a new national 100-meter hurdles record of 13.38 seconds.
She was likewise delighed in beating Aulia, who clocked 13.21 seconds in clinching gold in the event in the Thai capital of Bangkok last December.
Hoffman as eyeing to complete a hat trick of golds as a member of the national team’s 4×100-meter relay whose finals was scheduled Saturday night.
