Bejino, Mangliwan last in their events

MANILA, Philippines — Swimmer Gary Bejino and wheelchair racer Jerrold Mangliwan gave their all but couldn’t deliver in their respective events as the Philippines closed out its campaign in the Tokyo Paralympics yesterday.

Bejino finished last in the 100-meter backstroke (S6) with a clocking of a minute and 28.87 seconds at the Tokyo Aquatics Center while Mangliwan had a similar finish in the 100m (T52) in 20.08 seconds at the Olympic Stadium.

“He (Bejino) was about .30 seconds away from his personal best. Nagkamali siya going for the turn at the halfway mark so had an open turn (touching the wall).  But we are still happy with his time,” said swimming coach Tony Ong.

Mangliwan, meanwhile, ran into technical problems.

“I was talking to Jerrold before the start of the race and he seemed to be having problems with his rim-pusher on the racer, putting tape on it to have a firm grip. Yung 20 seconds talagang mabagal yun para sa kanya,” said athletics coach Joel Deriada.