Diones, Cray cinch to make SEAG team

ILAGAN CITY, Isabela, Philippines – If their performances in the Ayala National Athletics Open were to be used as gauge, triple jumper Mark Diones and the Eric Cray-led 4x100m relay team should be legitimate gold medal prospects in the Southeast Asian Games in Malaysia this August.

“Diones and 4x100m relay team will be serious threats in the SEAG,” said athletics president Philip Ella Juico.

Diones erased the five-month-old record of 16.29m he himself set in the weekly relays at the Philsports Complex in Pasig City with a 16.70m feat in the just-concluded Open while Cray anchored his team composed of Anfernee Lopena, Jomar Udtohan and fellow Fil-Am Trenten Beram to dominate the 4x100 relay event in 40.29, shattering the 12-year-old mark of 40.55 seconds.

Diones’ effort approximates the SEAG silver medal mark of 16.20m set by Thai Varunyoo Kongnil. With proper training, the Jose Rizal U criminology graduate could vie for the gold, held by Malaysian Muhammad Hakimi Ismail, who posted a 16.76m leap in the 2015 SEAG edition in Singapore.

In fact, Diones beat Ismail in the National Open as the latter struggled for a 16.06m effort after fouling his five attempts.

Meanwhile, the quartet of Cray, Beram, Udtohan and Lopena failed to meet the SEAG standard although, like Diones, they also expect to improve as a team with proper training.

“With more practice and training abroad, they can go below 40 (seconds) and maybe we could snatch the gold,” said Juico.

Aside from his pet events 100m and 400m where he is the owner of the current SEAG marks, Cray and Beram may also decide to join the 4x400m relay squad and contend for the gold.

Cray actually joined the 4x400m team in the Open, which also included Udtohan, Ryan Bigyan and Francis Medina, and won the gold.

But while their effort was below the SEAG standard, they remain confident to contend in Malaysia.