Ernie Gawilan delivered the Philippines’ breakthrough gold medal at the 5th Asian Para Games, ruling the men’s 400-meter freestyle S7 at the Rainbow Pool of the Nagoya City General Gymnasium.
The 35-year-old Davao City native clocked four minutes and 56.72 seconds to emerge victorious in a hard-fought race against China’s Zhang Yilong and Singapore’s Toh Wei Soong, who settled for silver and bronze in 5:01.36 and 5:24.23, respectively.
Gawilan’s triumph marked his third consecutive gold medal in the event, adding to his growing legacy in the regional competition. He previously captured three golds at the 2018 Jakarta Games before securing another title in Hangzhou, China, three years ago.
His latest victory also came with a significant bonus, as his winning time earned him qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics, according to national para swimming coach Tony Ong.
“He’s already qualified for the 2028 LA Olympics because of his time,” Ong said.
Gawilan’s golden performance provided a much-needed boost for the Philippine delegation, which endured a difficult start to the eight-day competition.
Earlier in the swimming preliminaries, Edwin Villanueva finished 10th in the men’s 400-meter freestyle S8 with a time of 6:22.33, while Muhaimin Ulag placed 12th in the men’s 200-meter individual medley SM9 in 3:04.30.
The Philippines also struggled in track cycling at the Izu Velodrome, where Patrick Lee and Arthus Bucay wound up 12th and 14th, respectively, in the 1,000-meter time trial. Lee clocked 1:14.888, while Bucay finished in 1:19.496.
National cycling coach Norberto October had previously tempered expectations for the track events but expressed optimism about the country’s chances in the road race, where the Filipino riders could mount a stronger challenge for the podium.
Meanwhile, Edmond Montecillo bowed out of the men’s J1 -70kg judo competition after losing to Uzbekistan’s Ibrokhimjon Akbarov by ippon in the round of 16 at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall.
Al Jaed Pacheco remained the Philippines’ last hope in judo, with a scheduled matchup against Iran’s Mahdi Borchlou in the men’s J1 -81kg division on Tuesday.
The country’s table tennis campaign also took several hits at Sky Hall Toyota, as four Filipino bets exited their respective singles competitions.
Lhey Manginsay fell to South Korea’s Kim Kun-Hea, 3-11, 3-11, 2-11, in the women’s singles Class 9, while Billy Cartera suffered an 11-4, 11-3, 11-3 defeat against Thailand’s Norakan Chanphaka in the men’s singles Class 4-5.
Johna Pena likewise bowed out after a 9-11, 6-11, 3-11 loss to South Korea’s Kim Seongok in the women’s singles Class 7.
Noriko Batuhan also failed to advance, dropping her women’s singles Class 3 match against China’s Huang Zhirui, 5-11, 11-6, 3-11, 1-11.
Wilfred Redulla, however, remained in contention for a medal, facing Kazakhstan’s Ali Makhubekov in the men’s singles Class 8 quarterfinals at press time.
