NCR tanker sparks Palaro record binge

BACOLOD CITY -- A young product of the German swimming system broke a record twice in the day and emerged the first triple gold medalist while a young protégé of a Japanese coach of Olympic renown produced the other stunner as National Capital Region buckled down to work on the second day of the 2000 Palarong Pambansa yesterday.

Ronald Alejo Guiriba, who a day earlier crushed the meet record in the 200m butterfly, wiped out the old mark of 1:04.92 by Andrei Ynelino in the morning heats of the 100m butterfly with a clocking of 1:03.8. Three hours later, he exceeded that mark with a time of 1:03.4 in the afternoon finals.

"I know my record will be broken because the swimmers get better every year, but I hope this one will stay longer in the books," said Guiriba, a member of the Philippine Columbian Association swimming team under German-trained coach Angelo Lozada.

"I would also like to be an Olympian someday, and make a mark particularly in the butterfly," said Guiriba, 13.

The five-foot-six Paco Catholic School graduate, who hopes to swim for San Beda College where he is enrolled in high school, also helped the NCR team to a record-breaking feat in the 200m relay. The team clocked 2:08.57 which obliterated the mark of 2:09.54 set by Southern Tagalog in 1998 and placed Guiriba's name in the record books for the third time in the day and fourth in two days.

Fourteen-year-old UST junior Michelle Nisce, a member of the developmental pool and trained by Japanese coach Riyuzo Izhikawa, annexed her second gold by topping the 100m butterfly in 1:10.49.

Swimming, however, was not NCR's total monopoly.

Western Visayas' Kerschtine Velez, who almost gave up swimming until a decent finish in the Pan-Pacific games convinced her she could have a future in the sport, reset the mark in the 12-under girls 100m butterfly in 1:11.33, erasing the record of 1:12.52 by Luisa Dacanay to join the circle of double gold medalists.

Southern Tagalog also had bite of the cake with wins in the girls 12-under 200m medley relay team (2:22.38) and the boys 13-under medley relay (2:00.69).

Western Visays won the other gold through Doren Peronilla (50m breastroke, 12-U girls, 38-79.)

The Bicol Region won two gold medals through Gerald Bordado in the 50-m breaststroke for boys 12 and under (36.02) and Jonathan Villagracia in the 200m breaststroke for boys 13 and above (2:34.94).