Torres claims silver in Asian GP

Battling humid weather, reigning MILO National Open long jump champion Maristella Torres Wednesday picked up a silver medal in the first stop of the four-leg Asian Athletics Grand Prix in Hyderabad, India.

The San Jose, Negros Oriental lass could only leap 6.21 meters as against the 6.62 distance of gold medalist Yelen Kochsheyeva of Kazakhstan. Torres’ jump was a far cry from her 6.40 m effort in the 2002 Asian Championships held in Colombo, Sri Lanka where she finished third behind compatriot Lerma Bulauitan Gabito and the same Kazakh athlete.

However, Gabito, this time, could only place fourth, registering a short 6.11 m as Kyrgystan’s Elena Bobrovskaya beat her to the bronze. Coach Joseph Sy, who relayed the duo’s individual performances to PATAFA chief Go Teng Kok, said the tiring long flight from Manila left his wards with less than 24 hours of rest before the tournament. The three-man RP delegation left Monday afternoon via Bangkok and arrived in India Tuesday.

Go said he was not worried about Torres’ and Gabito’s respective performances saying both would still continue to improve and peak in time for the SEA Games in December. Go said he was glad the AGP is being held prior to the biennial tournament where they could get the necessary exposure.

"The Vietnam event is still more than six months to go. As long as they avoid injuries, I think either one of them is capable of pulling a surprise," Go observed.

A Vietnamese, Phan Thi Thu ruled the 2001 SEAG long jump in Kuala Lumpur registering 6.46 m where Gabito settled for the silver with a personal best of 6.43. Torres has yet to see action in the SEA Games.

The 22-year-old Torres’ silver medal finish is worth $1,500, roughly P79,500, a windfall for the once impoverished Palarong Pambansa champion.