Aleah Finnegan dominated the women’s vault finals with an average score of 13.433 at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games artistic gymnastics competitions on Thursday at Thammasat University Rangsit Campus in Bangkok, Thailand.
This marks Finnegan’s third SEA Games gold, adding to her two victories from the 2021 edition in Hanoi, where she helped the Philippines secure the women’s team title and also claimed gold in the vault.
She successfully defended her title in the same apparatus as women’s gymnastics was scrapped from the 2023 Cambodia Games.
(C) POC Media
Vietnam’s Nguyen Thiquynh Nhu took silver with 13.400, while Malaysia’s Yeap Kang Xian earned bronze with 12.966.
Finnegan’s victory marked the Philippines’ third official gold medal of the day, following jiu-jitsu triumphs by Kim and Dean Roxas.
Haylee Garcia added a silver medal in the uneven bars with a score of 12.233, finishing behind Malaysia’s Rachel Li Wen Yeoh, who dominated with 13.300. Singapore’s Colleen Hong rounded out the podium with bronze at 10.933.
Justine Ace De Leon capped Team Philippines’ Day 1 campaign in the apparatus finals by claiming two bronzes in the men’s floor exercise and still rings.
