Iloilo City—Guilliver Clive Clemente of Antique claimed his fourth gold to join four other eagle-eyed archers as the first quadruple gold medalists in the Visayas Leg of the 2019 Philippine National Youth Games-Batang Pinoy at the Iloilo Sports Complex here yesterday.
Clemente, 14, ruled the 200m breaststroke in two minutes and 37.46 seconds to add to the three golds—400m individual medley, 50m breast and 200m IM—he scooped up in the first two days of pool competition.
The eighth-grader from Antique National School will have a chance to win a fifth as he plunges back into action in today’s 100m IM.
Clemente thus moved into the elite company of four-gold medal winners that included archers Naina Dominique Tagle and Prisa Heren Lofranco of Dumaguete, Aldrener Igot, Jr. of Cebu City and Godwell Maloloy-on of Mandaue.
Tagle and Igot swept all golds in the 30m, 40m, 50m and 60m for boys’ and girls’ cub division, while Lofranco and Maloloy-on did the same in the cadet class.
All four have strong chances of getting the maximum seven golds if they could top the mixed team at press time and the team and Olympic Round events today.
Ormoc’s Coby Marcus Rivilla and Tagbilaran’s Anthony Jude Presas copped their third swimming golds in the boys’ 12-under 100m backstroke and boys’ 15-under 400m freestyle, respectively.
Rivilla timed in 1:17.84, besting Tagbilaran’s John Sylvester Dequna (1:23.26) and Ormoc’s Amare Kobe Guadayo (1:28.40), while Presas checked in at 4:42.91 ahead of Negros Occidental’s Renji de Miguel (4:59.67) and Bohol’s Ralph Joshua Monje (5:01.51).
Alexi Kouzenye Cabayaran likewise splashed her way to a third gold in the girls’ 13-15 100m back in 1:10.64.
Also emerging victorious from the pool were Bacolod City’s Kalra Ysaballe Labayen (girls’ 15-under 400m free) and Maxene Hayley Uy (girls’ 15-under 50m butterfly), Dumaguete’s Kacie Gabrielle Tionko (girls’ 100m back), Negros Occidental’s Jay-R Punzalan (boys’ 13-15 100m back), Troy Castor (boys’ 12-under 50m fly) and Earl Jude Buncio (boys’ 13-15 50m fly), and Kalibo, Aklan’s Kyla Soquilon (girls’ 13-15 50m fly).
In centerpiece athletics, Negros Occidental’s Marden Gabriel Villaruel, the fastest man in the weeklong event for in and out-of-school athletes aged 15 years old and below after reigning supreme in the century dash a couple of days back, took the 200m gold in 23.6 to complete a sprint double.
Brineth Cupan of Negros Occidental denied Bacolod City’s Krisha Aguilon and Aubrey Mae Mercado a third mint after snatching the girls’ 200m gold in 26.8 ahead of Aguilon (27.1) and another Negros Occidental bet Jeanaica Estimar (27.7).
Mercado wound up only fourth. Aguilon ruled the 100m, Mercado the 400m and the two teamed up in the 4x100m relay the day before and were the favorites coming into the 200m before Cupan decided to spoil the party by snaring for herself the gold.