Well played: All Sibol teams land in SEA Games podium

MANILA, Philippines — Sibol has started its “Taon ng Tagumpay” on a high note with a medal in every event they participated in during the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.

Though missing out on a podium finish in the team category, PUBG Mobile player Abdul "Monboy" Barode raised the Philippine flag as he finished with 81 points in the individual category, enough to add another bronze to the team's medal haul.

The last medal brings Sibol’s total tally to six, with two golds (Wild Rift and Mobile Legends-Men), one silver (Mobile Legends-Women) and three bronze (CrossFire, Valorant and PUBG Mobile-Individual).

"We are very happy with the results. We know we could’ve brought home more prestigious medals but we know that we are on the right track and we will continue to move the Filipino Esports Athlete forward! We have medal finishes for all the games we competed in, for that we say Mission Accomplished!" Sibol general manager Jab Escutin told Philstar.com in an online message.

The six-medal finish is the team's best in the past three SEA Games since esports was introduced as a medal event. In 2019, when esports made its debut in the games hosted by the Philippines, Sibol hauled in three golds, one silver and one bronze for a total of five medals. Last year, however saw a few heartbreaks as the Philippines’ esports team had last-place finishes in some events but ended up with a four-medal haul: two golds and two silvers.

Even with the conclusion of the SEA Games, Sibol still has a busy year ahead of them with the upcoming World Esports Championship in August, the Asian Games in September, and the Asian Indoor Games in November.