Joanie Delgaco finished sixth in the women’s single sculls final at the 2026 Asian Games on Thursday, ending her campaign without a medal but already looking ahead to her next chance at Olympic qualification.
Delgaco clocked 8 minutes, 1.63 seconds in Final A at Nagaragawa International Regatta Course.
China’s Zhang Xinyu won the gold in 7:21.53, with Uzbekistan’s Anna Prakaten taking silver and Iran’s Fatemeh Mojallal Topraghhale claiming bronze.
Delgaco said she was satisfied with her performance despite missing the podium.
‘Even though I didn’t make the podium, I’m thankful that I was able to finish the race. I think I performed well, and I have no regrets because I gave it everything I had,’ Delgaco said in Filipino.
The Filipina said she thought about the work that went into her Asian Games campaign, including a two-and-a-half-month training camp in Germany after preparations in the Philippines.
‘Even at the starting line, I was thinking about everything we went through in training. We started in the Philippines, then trained in Germany for two and a half months. I kept thinking about all the work we put in. I hoped I could bring all of that here, but I still came up short,’ she said.
Delgaco, a Paris Olympian, admitted she became emotional after the race but said she would use the result as motivation for her next competition.
Her focus now shifts to the Olympic qualification campaign next year.
‘Right now, all I’m thinking about is making up for this next year in the Olympic qualifiers. That’s one of the things motivating me to bounce back,’ she said.