RP Sick Man of Asian Sports No More
Sick Man of Asian sports no more. Long languishing in the shadows of the traditional sports powers in the region, the Philippines bade goodbye to that lowly tag Monday when it officially captured a historic first overall title in the Southeast AsianGames, a feat accomplished on home turf and with the support of a nation badly needing a respite from its tumultuous political life.
A runaway final tally of 113 gold medals did it for the Filipinos whofailed to win the championships the first two times they hosted the meet in1981 and 1991. This time, there was no down-the-wire finish to speak of like that one 14 years ago when the Philippines fell short of one gold medal, allowingIndonesia to snatch the overall title in a heartbreaking setback stilletched vividly in the minds of every Filipino. It was a Philippine show all the way in this year?s games as Filipinoathletes registered one victory after another, relegating Thailand anddefending champion Vietnam fighting for the silver of second best in theoverall reckoning.
Filipino superiority in the last fortnight was nowhere more evident than in seven sports where it accounted for 58 gold medals, more than half of itstotal haul of 113. The ancient Chinese martial arts of wushu was the most productive with 11victories out of 22 events as the host grabbed the overall title in the sport. Despite falling one short of their target, Filipino tracksters provided nine gold medals in the centerpiece event of athletics, a modest harvest that paled in comparison to the 12 that Thailand got to keep the championship in the sport.
Filipino boxers accounted for eight to snatch the title from Thailand and so did the cue artists who turned in the same number of golds to show and sundry that it is still second to none in the game. The contact sport of taekwondo and the traditional boat race provided six golds each for the hosts while fencing and tennis contributed five apiece..In all, the Philippines topped the tally in 17 sports, leaving Thailand andVietnam battling for the crumbs.
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