CAPAS, Tarlac — With Olympian Kristina Knott watching from the gallery due to injury, Filipino-Australian sprinter Jessica Laurance cruised to victory in the women’s 100-meter event at the ICTSI Philippine Athletics Championships on Friday night at the New Clark City Athletic Stadium.
Knott, who suffered injuries during the women’s 200-meter race a day earlier, withdrew from the heats after warm-ups. Nursing a badly scratched right elbow, she opted to err on the side of caution and did not compete, instead cheering from the stands as Laurance finished strongly in 11.76 seconds under dry conditions.
The 21-year-old Laurance, who was competing on local soil for the first time, expressed joy over the result. She said she appreciated having been pushed by Knott in the previous night’s race and still found satisfaction in winning her second medal of the meet, even without the Olympic veteran on the track. “I’m happy with the result. Yesterday, we both pushed each other a lot. I really enjoyed running with her,” said Laurance, who bested University of Santo Tomas standout Lianne Pama (11.98 seconds) and Hannah Delotavo (12.29).
In the men’s 100-meter final, Singapore national champion and SEA Games medalist Marc Brian Louis delivered a thrilling performance. The 20-year-old, whose mother Julie Ann Adsuara is from Moncada, Tarlac, clocked 10.45 seconds to narrowly edge Fil-Am Miguel Anthony Rosario, who settled for silver with a time of 10.53 seconds. Fellow Singaporean Daryl Tan completed the podium in 10.62 seconds.
Louis’ winning time was 0.04 seconds faster than his gold-winning performance at the 85th Singapore Open Track and Field Championships, and just shy of his national record of 10.27 seconds — a mark that is also co-held by Filipino-American Eric Cray. Coached by former University of Santo Tomas athlete Benber Yu, Louis is a veteran of three Southeast Asian Games and has earned a silver and bronze medal in previous editions. He noted the high level of competition from his Filipino rivals and said, “I think it was good competition. I had tough opponents, from the Philippine athletes.”
Elsewhere on the track, Fil-Am Elijah Cole struck gold in the men’s open pole vault, clearing 5.25 meters to beat Taiwanese competitors Huang Cheng-chi and Wu Yan-han, who both managed 5.20 meters. Huang secured the silver on countback. Another Fil-Am, Willie Morrison, retained his men’s shot put crown with a winning mark of 18.81 meters, achieved on his second throw.
In the men’s triple jump, national team member Ronnie Malipay claimed the top spot with a leap of 15.77 meters. On the women’s side, UST’s Jeanne Ambal took gold with a jump of 12.44 meters.
The men’s 1,500-meter run saw UE’s Anthony Cariaso cross the finish line first in 4:04.86, taking advantage of the absence of favorite Yacine Guermali, who withdrew at the last minute. FEU’s Susan Ramadan ruled the women’s division of the same event, clocking 4:40.80.
In the under-18 100-meter sprint finals, Lynette Libranda of UST clinched the girls’ title with a time of 12.33 seconds, ahead of Binan’s Hazel Resma (12.75) and Leanne Barayuga (12.85). In the boys’ division, Pi Wangkay of CC Athletics secured victory in 10.91 seconds, outpacing John Abetong of KG Mercuries (11.11) and Karl Tacay (11.13).
