Just two days before her sister, Malea Cesar, vies for gold with the Filipinas in women’s football, 16-year-old Naomi Cesar sprints to gold in the 800 meters.
The younger Cesar seized a historic gold at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games on Monday, thrilling the Philippine athletics team at the Supachalasai Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Turning her recent silver at the Asian Youth Games into gold, Naomi powered through two laps of the iconic stadium, making a milestone of her own, with a gold-winning finish of 2:10.2.
“It was great; I couldn’t ask for a better result. I’m still kind of in shock, but it was amazing. I got tripped up a little bit on the way to the second lap, so I was just like, I have to give everything I can on the track,” the young upstart shared.
“It was amazing; I’m so honored. I’m always so proud to represent the country, and to win gold is a dream come true,” she shared.
(C) POC Media
UAAP Seasons 86 and 87 MVP Bernalyn Bejoy, a De La Salle University product, made it 1-3 for the Philippines and finished with the bronze, with a time of 2:10.6.
Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Thu Ha could not make it a back-to-back for her and instead bagged the silver with a time of 2:10.3, splitting the two young Filipinas at the finish. This is also the first time a non-Vietnamese has won the event, marking the first victory in 13 consecutive editions.
Her victory also gives a boost to the Philippine athletics contingent, which has been chasing more gold medals following standout performances from Olympian John Cabang in the men’s 110-meter hurdles and Hokkett Delos Santos in the men’s decathlon.
The Philippines also made it a double in the 800 meters, as Hussein Loraña took the men’s race just moments later
