Ernie Gawilan did more than win—he rewrote history.
The three-time Paralympian shattered an 18-year-old ASEAN Para Games record en route to his second gold medal at the 80th Birthday Aquatics Center on Thursday, underscoring a campaign fueled by bigger dreams beyond the podium.
Gawilan touched the wall in a blistering two minutes and 26.08 seconds to rule the men’s 200-meter freestyle S7 event, erasing the long-standing mark of 2:52.11 set by Thailand’s Sittichai Somyut during the 2008 Nakhon Ratchasima Para Games.
Now 35, Gawilan said his motivation in this tournament goes beyond medals, as he sets his sights on the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics while striving to be a father his soon-to-be-born daughter can look up to.
“Sana, ipagmalaki niya sa mga kaibigan niya balang araw. Sana maging atleta rin siya, swimmer din,” Gawilan said.
“Pinapangarap natin yung medalya. Ginawa ko naman ang lahat at sana maabot natin yun balang araw.”
The Philippines’ golden surge continued as Gary Bejino, the country’s first gold medalist earlier this week, delivered another top podium finish by ruling the men’s 200-meter freestyle S6 event. Bejino clocked in at two minutes and 37 seconds, eclipsing his own previous record of 2:38.55 set in the Phnom Penh edition of the Games.
“200m event naman siya so kailangan mo i-distribute ang lakas mo. Sa training kasi, inaaral na pacing, lalo na sa distance kasi kapag naubos ka, mahirap na bumalik,” said Bejino, who also won silver in the mixed 4×50-meter freestyle relay 20 points S1–S10 event alongside Angel Mae Otom, Marco Tinamisan, and Bea Roble.
“Sa Para Games, sana madagdagan pa mga gold na makuha ko ngayon.”
The 30-year-old Tokyo Paralympian later added a silver medal to his haul after finishing second in the men’s 50-meter freestyle S6 with a time of 34.38 seconds.
Angel Otom also struck gold anew, claiming her second title of the meet after dominating the women’s 100-meter freestyle S4–S5 event in 1:41.44. Ariel Joseph Alegarbes joined the winners’ circle as well, topping the men’s 100-meter backstroke S14 in 1:02.52.
On the track, Rodrigo Podiotan Jr. rewrote another record on Wednesday after ruling the men’s 400-meter T52 event with a time of 1:01.06, surpassing the previous mark of 1:01.93. Jerrold Mangliwan settled for silver in the same race with 1:01.41.
Palarong Pambansa standout Jan Jayro Palermo capped the strong showing by capturing his first ASEAN Para Games gold medal, leaping 6.89 meters to win the men’s long jump F20 event.
As of writing, the Philippines sits in third place in the medal standings with 12 golds, 10 silvers, and eight bronze medals.
