Philippines, 13 Sep 2025
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


SEA Games Feature: From Day 1 of action, host Philippines had taken command


PhilBoxing.com




The 30th edition of the Southeast Asian Games the country is hosting that started last November 30 reached its halfway mark on Friday and by the looks of things, host Philippines is on the way to clinching its second overall championship it first won 14 years ago in 2005.

After five days of hostilities, the Filipino athletes, who their detractors diagnosed as ill-prepared and incapable of vaulting back from the sixth place grave their predecessors dug themselves in in the 29th staging of the biennial meet in Kuala Lumpur, started like a house on fire digging 23 gold medals in Day 1 to catapult themselves up at the top of the standing they never relinquished since.

Halfway through the Games held in separate parts of Central Luzon, Metro Manila, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas and to as far as La Union in Northern Luzon, they amassed a total 70 gold medals, 41 more than what their closest pursuers, the Vietnamese, could muster.

Yes, the Filipino athletes’ 41 gold medal difference over the Vietnamese looked unreachable and safe, far for even the overall title defender Malaysia could overhaul.

Thanks to Pinoy performers representing seldom mentioned dance sports, who helped the national delegation racked out 23 gold medals on Day 1 alone with 10 of their own two Sundays ago at Royce Hotel ballroom in Subic.

That came as the most ferocious show of force by any contingent in any day and in any edition and at any opening day of action at that.

That came, too, as more devastating than the 2005 delegation’s 20-gold harvest in the second day of hostilities 14 years ago that served as cushion to the country’s coronation following eight days of fighting for supremacy that produced a total 113 gold medals.

A few days later following that gold rush of the Filipino dancers, it was the practitioners of the Filipino indigenous game arnis to show their wares at the Angeles University Foundation gymnasium in Pampanga where they mesmerized their rivals and spectators alike by scooping up 14 gold medals.

At the end of the day, the Filipino athletes were standing 10-feet tall at the victory podium where the arnis aces leading in the gold medal rush with 14, dance sports, 10; wushu, 7; triathlon, and obstacle course 4 each;

Cycling, 3; basketball, gymnastics, modern pentathlon, sepak takraw, sambo, shooting, skateboarding and weightlifting, 2 each; and athletics, fencing, golf, squash and swimming 1, each.

Some of the highlights of the first five days of play: world gymnastics champion Carlos Edriel Yulo and wushu’s pretty ace Agatha Wong became the first two athletes to scoop up a pair of individual gold medals each;

Rio de Janeiro Olympic silver medalists in weightlifting Hidilyn Diaz finally ending her long years drought by winning her first; and Fil-Am James Deiparine ended the Philippines’ 10-year thirst for a gold medal in swimming after ruling the the 100-meter breaststroke held at Aquatics Center, New Clark City, Capas, Tarlac.

A day before the first gold medal was won, the Games opened in a grandiose Olympic-style ceremonies at the cavernous 55-seat Philippine Arena, a first such a rite was held indoor in the 60-year history of the conclave that started as the SEA Peninsular Games in 1959 before its name was change to the present SEA Games.

All the 40 or so venues feared not to be completed on time were all finished at the opening, proof that reports circulated before the Games commenced were all “fake news.”

Foreign athletes have been getting 24-hour dining treat in all billeting places and competition sites belying, too, earlier reports of the Philippine SEA Games Organizing Committees inefficiency on the matter of accommodations played in both social and mainstream media.


Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.


Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford: Size Matters
    By Chris Carlson, , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • BOOTS TALKS SPARRING WITH CANELO IN ‘DAY IN THE LIFE’
    , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • WEIGHTS FROM LAS VEGAS: CANELO - 167.5 LBS., CRAWFORD - 167.5 LBS.
    By Dong Secuya, , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • BELFAST: WEIGH-IN RESULTS AND FIGHT NIGHT RUNNING ORDER
    , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • Canoy cancels title fight due to child’s death
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • Vietnam’s Pool Revolution: Hanoi Open Pool Championship
    , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • SUNDAY: Naoya Inoue vs. Murodjon Akhmadaliev Undisputed Super Bantamweight Showdown to Stream Exclusively on Top Rank’s Facebook Channel in the U.S. & UK
    , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • National Shelter Month Run on October 25 in DGT
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • Canelo-Crawford: Betting Odds Reveal a Battle of Money vs. Public Opinion
    By Dong Secuya, , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • BELFAST PRESS CONFERENCE: EVERYTHING LEWIS CROCKER AND PADDY DONOVAN SAID AHEAD OF HISTORIC WORLD TITLE SHOWDOWN
    , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • GABRIELA “SWEET POISON” FUNDORA TO DEFEND UNDISPUTED CROWN AGAINST HIGHLY RANKED NEW FOE ALEXAS “IRON LADY” KUBICKI
    , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • Chino Sy Tancontian is Sports Hero of the Year 2025
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • Two (or Three) Lefts Make a Right: Francisco Guilledo to Luisito Espinosa
    By Emmanuel Rivera, RRT, , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Yoseline Perez Advances to 2025 World Boxing Championships Semifinals
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • UNIFIED WORLD CHAMPION OSCAR COLLAZO HOSTS MEDIA WORKOUT
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Jerwin Ancajas Set for IBF Mandatory Eliminator Against Former World Champ Ryosuke Nishida; Winner Fights Naoya Inoue
    By Carlos Costa, , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • “Night of Champions” Returns to Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando on September 19
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Local Favorite Bryce Mills Tops First Boxing Card At del Lago Resort & Casino
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Round 12 with Mauricio Sulaiman: It´s Fightweek Fight: Canelo vs. Crawford
    By Mauricio Sulaimán, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Casimero comeback next month in Kyrgyzstan?
    By Nick Giongco, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Team USA Concludes Day Six of 2025 World Boxing Championships
    , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Andrade, Garras rule Milo marathon in Tagum
    , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • CROCKER-DONOVAN II: INSIDE LOOK AT FIRST FACE-OFF IN BELFAST
    , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Former Panamanian WBA champ Jorge Lujan hospitalized
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Southern Sports Heroes Night on Sept. 28
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2025 philboxing.com.