Hidilyn Diaz sweeps weightlifting honors

Tanker La Torre snares third gold

NAGA, Cebu, Philippines — Olympic silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz bested all comers in weightlifting’s Open division, ruling the event she was heavily favored to win in the Philippine National Games at Naga Covered Court here yesterday.

Coming in with a bodyweight of 57.2 kilograms, far from her ideal weight of 53kg, the Zamboanga City ace recorded a total of 205kg after lifting 80kh, 85kg and 90kg in her three attempts in the snatch and 105kg, 110kg and 115kg in the clean and jerk.

Diaz, who hoisted 200kg as a 53-kg lifter in her silver medal effort in the 2016 Games in Rio de Janerio, Brazil, turned back Zamboanga teammate and teenage sensation Dessa Delos Santos and Quezon City’s Daryl Banania, who took the silver and bronze with lifts of 170 and 119, respectively.

Delos Santos, 19, provided the challenge for Diaz being a 2016 Asian Juniors silver medal winner in Tokyo, Japan and considered as the next big thing in weightlifting. But Diaz showed she remains the country’s top lifter.

Earlier, national track team mainstays Marco Vilog, Anfernee Lopena, Immuel Camino and Aries Toledo endured the sweltering heat and a tough field to rule their respective events even as Gen. Santos City tanker Nino Owen La Torre notched his third gold medal in the annual games.

Vilog, a 23-year-old Kuala Lumpur SEA Games silver medalist and a cinch to make it to the Asian Games-bound team to Indonesia this August, put up a strong finishing kick to turn back fellow national team member Elbrin Neri for the 800m run gold in one minute and 56.05 seconds.

The Oriental Mindoro native, however, admitted to have struggled under the scorching heat and missed at improving his personal best of 1:48.91.

“I gave it my best but it was just too hot,” said Vilog, who is also set to see action in the Ayala-National Open next week in Ilagan, Isabela.

Lopena, on the other hand, overcame a faulty start and topped the 100m dash in 10.96 seconds to emerge the fastest man in the weeklong meet.

Nearly tripping from the starting block, Lapena regained his bearing and form in time, storming past Michael Mana-ay of Negros Occidental and William Galceran of Mandaluyong at the finish.

Mana-ay took the silver in 11.01 while Galceran settled for the bronze in 11.11.

Camino, meanwhile, dominated the 3,000m steeplechase in 9:59.91, beating Cebu City’s Arnel Florentino (10:48.91) and Harold Kim Guiao (11:02.58).

Forced to compete in individual events after his pet event – decathlon – was scrapped off the calendar due to lack of competition, Toledo, a gold medal winner in KL SEAG, didn’t disappoint and ruled the 110m hurdles in 14.52, outsprinting national hurdler Patrick Unso, who timed 14.56.

Toledo, also a shoo-in in the Asiad, placed fourth in high jump the day before.

At the pool, La Torre claimed the 400m individual medley gold in 5:08:81, his third after topping the 100m and 1,500m freestyle the day before to match Sta. Rosa, Laguna’s Nicole Meah Pamintuan’s three-gold feat.

It was also Gen. Santos’ sixth mint with Kelsey Claire Jaudian adding one in the women’s 400m IM where she clocked 5:37.46.

In chess, top seed Woman Grandmaster Janelle Mae Frayna of Albay beat Cebu City bet Keith Claire Morala in the seven-round standard event at the Robinson’s Galleria-Cebu.

GMs John Paul Gomez of Albay, Joey Antonio of Calapan, Oriental Mindoro and Darwin Laylo of Marikina City, meanwhile, posted resounding victories in the men’s competition.

In cycling in Danao, Cebu City bet Nino Surban pedaled his way to the mountain bike gold by clocking 1:06:34, beating the Lapaza brothers Cesar Jr. and Reimon.

Cesar, the reigning national mountain bike champion, finished third behind eventual silver medal winner Edmhel John Flores of Marikina City (1:08:09) by submitting 1:09:06, which was good for the bronze.

The elder Lapaza, the 2014 LBC Ronda Pilipinas champion, wound up fifth in 1:11:18.