It is not uncommon in Philippine sports to see athletes from different generations of the same family excelling in the Southeast Asian Games.
Tennis star Alex Eala, already assured of at least two bronze medals in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, is the daughter of 1985 SEA Games 100-meter backstroke bronze medalist Rizza Maniego-Eala. Eala, who was just 16 at the time, won three bronze medals in the 2022 edition in Vietnam.
In athletics, EJ Obiena has dominated the pole vault, winning gold in the 2019, 2021, and 2023 SEA Games. His father, Emerson Obiena, also stood on the podium in the same event, claiming silver in 1993 and bronze in 2005.
Basketball has seen similar family success.
Benjie Paras won gold at the 1987 SEA Games in Jakarta, a feat later matched by his son Kobe Paras in the 2017 edition, also in Jakarta.
The same parallel can be drawn with former Gilas Women player Gabi Bade, a gold medalist in 2021, and her father Cris, who won gold in 1993.
If Gilas Pilipinas retains the title this year in Bangkok, Thirdy Ravena would become the third Ravena to win SEA Games gold.
His father, Bong, was a key member of the title-regaining 1991 Philippine team in Manila, while his older brother Kiefer is a five-time SEA Games gold medalist.
In karate, Jamie Lim is a two-time kumite gold medalist (2019 and 2021), matching the two SEA Games golds won by her father, the late Samboy Lim, in 1983 and 1985.
On Sunday in Chonburi, 16-year-old Naomi Cesar watched her older sister Malea start for the Filipinas in the semifinals of the women’s football competition.
The national team’s best SEA Games finishes remain bronze medals in 1985 and 2021, with Malea—now competing in her third straight SEA Games—having been part of the 2021 podium squad.
The Filipinas later made history by defeating host Thailand on penalties to reach the finals for the first time.
The younger Cesar then traveled 108 kilometers back to Bangkok the following day for the athletics competition at Suphachalasai Stadium.
Naomi stunned the field—though not herself—as she surged past defending champion Nguyễn Thị Thu Hà of Vietnam to capture the women’s 800-meter gold.
“I knew it was a possibility. I didn’t put any expectations on myself. But I visualized myself winning,” said the newly minted Southeast Asian champion.
This was not the first time the Cesar siblings brought honor to the Philippines.
Just last October, Naomi claimed a silver medal at the Asian Youth Games in Bahrain.
Malea, meanwhile, was part of the squad that won the 2022 ASEAN Women’s Championship and went on to compete in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The success of the Cesar sisters comes as little surprise given their athletic lineage.
Their father, Ben, also competed in the SEA Games in the 1990s as a member of the Philippine national athletics team.
He now guides Naomi’s career and serves as her coach.
Malea shared in an interview with Filipinas Futbol, “It’s emotional to be able to represent at the same event as my Dad and my sister at the same time.”
She added, “The SEA Games was what I looked up to as a kid, knowing that my dad had done this, and that I could do it in my sport.”
