PI DURDEN WANGKAY has proven he can rise on the Asian athletics stage and although he admits there’s still a long road ahead to reach the elite level, he’s confident he has what it takes.
The sprint champion, along with other Filipino medalists from the Third Asian Youth Games (AYG), already has plans to invest in his development after learning about the incentives pledged by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC).
‘I have potential,’ the 16-year-old Wangkay, winner of the 200-meter run in the AYG at Isa Sports City in Riffa, Bahrain.
‘I believe I can go beyond the SEA Games, not now but in time. I can compete at the Asian level. As for the World stage, I’m not sure yet-but we’ll work hard for it,’ he said.
‘The incentives will go a long way in helping me reach my goals,’ he added.
Each gold medal won by a Filipino individual athlete or pair in the Bahrain AYG is worth P500,000 and silver medals earn P300,000 and bronze medals P100,000, the PSC announced on Monday.
And there are more as POC president Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino said that the POC would give P250,000 for the gold medalists, P150,000 for the silver winners and P75,000 for the bronze medalists.
The gold medalists will also be given iPhone 17 Pro Max units, while iPhone 17 will be given to silver and bronze medalists care of Sportsplus, the official gaming partner of the POC.
With a packed schedule leading up to his Southeast Asian Games debut later this year, Wangkay is prioritizing safe and strategic preparation-focusing on nutrition, training, and equipment.
‘I hope to clock the best times while avoiding injury so we’re trimming the schedule,’ the De La Salle Zobel product said.
Elite-level athletics training requires specialized resistance equipment that is not cheap, and Wangkay is grateful for the support.
‘I’ll use the incentives to cover the expenses of my mom and coach,’ he said.
Kram Airam Carpio was first to deliver gold for the Philippines, winning in pencak silat, while Charlie Ratcliff made noise with a 63-second triumph in the girls’ 45-kg modern mixed martial arts.
Muay was the most productive team with three gold medals from Lyre Anie Ngina in girls’ wai kru, Zeth Gabriel Bueno in boys’ wai kru, and the mai muay pair of Jan Brix Ramiscal and Tyron Jamborillo.
The Philippines capped its campaign with a thrilling finale, with Fil-American jiujitsu fighter Isabella Butler sealing her dominant week with a submission win for the gold in the girls’ -63kg class.
Jhodie Peralta, who had earlier earned incentives from the Zamboanga sports program following her triple-gold performance at the International Wrestling Federation World Youth and Junior Championships in Peru, now has additional funds for to support her family’s plan to purchase land.
At the AYG, she bagged silver in the snatch and bronze in the clean and jerk in the 53kg class and like Wangkay is also gearing up for the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand in December.
The Philippines haul of seven gold, seven silver and 10 bronze was good for 12th place.
Tolentino lamented the country’s missed chances in other events such as beach volleyball and 3×3 basketball and urged sports stakeholders such as University Athletic Association of the Philippines teams to rally behind a common goal: ‘Put flag first.’
‘There were lessons learned there, we could have sent more medal contenders,’ Tolentino said.
PSC chairman Patrick ‘Pato’ Gregorio emphasized the urgent need for deeper investment in youth sports.
‘When I attended the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Argentina, it became clear-we can win at this level. That’s why I’m thrilled the POC is prioritizing the Asian Youth Games. These young athletes are future contenders for the Asian Games and even the Olympics. We need to keep building, because we’re on the right track.’