"I like my chances here. The track surface is good and I’d like to run on it," said Roberts, considered the Tiger Woods of Asian track and field, her father being an American (now retired from the military) and her mother a Thai.
The 32-year-old trackster, currently ranked second in Asia behind a Chinese, arrived in the country Friday night, then shared a light workout with the other foreign runners yesterday morning before gracing a press conference at noon.
The Busan Asian Games bronze medallist won the 100-m hurdles gold in the first three legs held in India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, each one of them worth $3,000, making her the clear favorite in the Manila leg.
The same prize money will be at stake tomorrow with silver medallists taking home $1,250 and bronze medallists $500.
"I’ll just try to win it so I can start preparing for the Asian Championships (in Manila in September) and the SEA Games (in Vietnam in December)," said Roberts, who took up business management at the University of Arizona.
In the absence of the Chinese runners, Roberts, who’s also into fashion merchandising, said she expects the biggest challenge from the Sri Lankans and a little one from RP’s Sheena Atilano and Leslie Cercado.
Other foreign runners competing tomorrow will come from Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Uzbekistan, India, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Malaysia and Singapore with most of them arriving this morning.
Other events to be contested starting at 3 p.m. are the long jump, shot put, javelin, discus throw, 100-meters, 400-m, 800-m and 4 x 100-m.
Local runners worth watching are Ernie Candelario (400-m), John Lozada (800-m), Jobert Delicano, Lerma Bulauitan and Maristella Torres (long jump), and Dandy Gallenero (javelin).
Bulauitan finished second twice and Torres once in the last three legs — all behind Kazakhstan’s Yelena Kochsheyeva who, like Roberts, is eyeing a sweep of all four gold medals for a $12,000 paycheck.