TAGAYTAY, Cavite — It was a double celebration for the Philippines after the host nation captured both the gold and bronze medals in the youth mixed pair event of the 2026 Aerobic Gymnastics Asian Championships on Thursday at the Tagaytay CT Velodrome here.
Rhimel Daniel Cabides and Antonette Amante danced to If Ever You’re In My Arms Again by Peabo Bryson en route to delivering the country’s first gold medal of the tournament, presented by the Philippine Sports Commission. The Filipino pair earned a score of 17.800.
Cabides and Amante finished tied with Vietnam’s Anh Thinh Tran and Ngoc Gia Thuong Nguyen, who settled for silver, but claimed the gold via the tiebreak after posting a higher execution score, 7.550 to 7.450.
(C) GAP
The Philippines placed another pair on the podium as Rhys Enoch Basmayor and Mikhaela Ladaran captured the bronze medal with a score of 17.150 in the continental meet organized by the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines, led by president Cynthia Carrion, and sanctioned by the Asian Gymnastics Union.
“Sobrang saya po kasi hindi ko po talaga in-expect na makakagold kami,” said Cabides after becoming an Asian champion in the tournament, which is supported by the Philippine Olympic Committee, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), and the Tagaytay City government led by Mayor Brent Tolentino.
“I didn’t really think that we could make it to Top 3 and we just prayed and prayed and we got it. I really thank God because both of our pairs made it to the podium,” added newly crowned bronze medalist Basmayor.
(C) GAP
The Philippines also collected bronze medals in the youth aero dance event and the youth individual men’s competition through Mico Vistal, giving the host nation a total haul of one gold and three bronze medals.
The bronze medal-winning aero dance team was composed of Basmayor, Ladaran, Miguel Martin, Anne Meniano, Nathalia Facultad, Sean Leona, Jane Ramos, and Casey Meniano.
Vistal scored 17.500 to finish third behind Vietnam’s gold and silver medalists, Duy Phu Nguyen and Viet Tuan Nguyen.
In the youth individual women’s event, Amante narrowly missed the podium by just 0.05 points. Thailand’s Thamonwan Yamano won the gold, while Vietnam’s Ngoc Cat Tuong Ta and Nguyen Thanh Thuy Dinh took the silver and bronze, respectively.
Chinese Taipei claimed both junior individual titles, with Zih-Yin Gao winning the men’s division and En-Yu Lin topping the women’s event.
Vietnam also completed another 1-2 finish in the junior trio category, while South Korea emerged victorious in the junior group and youth aero dance events.
Vietnam likewise won the youth group event, followed by Cambodia and South Korea, before adding another gold in the youth trio competition. Chinese Taipei settled for the silver and bronze medals in that event.
