Muay Association of the Philippines president Robert Valdez hopes to snatch two of the seven golds at stake behind world-class athletes Brent Velasco and Roland Claro.
Muay Thai was just a demonstration sport last year and, undeniably, Thailand remains the undisputed power of the sport in Southeast Asia.
But with Laos and Myanmar gaining ground in the sport, Valdez is not discounting the country’s chances of sharing the overall championship with Thailand.
"It’s hard to make promises, since Thailand remains a power in Southeast Asia. But calculating it, it’s very possible we could end up as co-champions as Laos and Myanmar are also fielding better athletes this SEA Games," said Valdez.
"We have a good chance because of their performance in the world championships. We have defeated some of them in past international competitions. I see a very tough fight for the overall championship," he added.
Velasco is a three-time world champion (2001, 2002 and 2004) and will be the country’s biggest bet for the gold in the bantamweight division (51-54 kgs.) against Thai champ Mongkhon Punpiboon.
Claro, a four-year national, captured the world title last year and hopes to bag the lightweight crown (45-48 kg.) up against Thailand’s lightweight champ Uchain Yingram.
Joining Velasco and Claro in the RP muay men’s team are 17-year-old flyweight Zaidi Laruan and featherweight Reynold Trasmonte.
Muay is the combative event while Wai-Kru is the artistic part of the sport where the Philippines will field six players — Rogelio Ganganera, Davis Panisigan, Claire Cadampang, Lianne Flameno, Teresita Victoria Agbayani and Cristina Custodio.