Triathletes eye 3-4 golds in Phnom Penh

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine triathlon team will try to replicate, if not eclipse, its three-gold medal haul in last year’s Hanoi Southeast Asian Games when it plunges into action in the Phnom Penh Games next month.

“I’m still confident, we’re targeting three (gold) medals, four if we are lucky,” Triathlon Association of the Philippines president Tom Carrasco yesterday told The STAR.

Carrasco said a total of seven golds will be staked in the Cambodian meet – three in aquathlon, two in triathlon and the same number in duathlon.

Kim Mangrobang will spearhead the country’s charge after her triumphs in women’s triathlon and duathlon in Hanoi where the Filipinos went home with a 3-1-1 (gold-silver-bronze) harvest with the other mint coming from Fernando Jose Casares in men’s triathlon.

Recently, Mangrobang and Casares were the best Filipino finishers in the Subic International Triathlon in Subic Bay, Zambales where they wound up 24th and 25th in an hour, a minute and seven seconds and 54:46, respectively.

Aussies Oscar Dart and Charlotte McShane reigned supreme in their respective classes with times of 52:05 and 58:43, respectively.

“Those performance was a tune-up,” said Carrasco. “I think they did as planned. Focus is on SEA Games, not this race. Though they were really pushed with the high caliber level of the elite field.”