Fifteen-year-old Laetaz Amihan Rabe marked her Asian Winter Games debut with a sixth-place finish in the women’s freeski slopestyle event on Tuesday at the Freeski Slopestyle Stadium in Heilongjiang, China. Despite finishing last in the competition, Rabe expressed pride in her performance.
“I’m still happy with my runs even though I ended up in last place. I’ve made a lot of progress and pushed myself in ways I never have before,” Rabe shared.
Rabe earned 56.50 points in her first run, successfully executing a 360-degree trick with a cannon move and tail grab. However, she was unable to improve her score in her final two runs, earning a DNI (Does Not Improve) tag.
China Dominates the Podium
China’s freestyle skiing team swept the podium, with Liu Mengting (94.0 points) taking gold after an impressive display of gravity-defying stunts and technical spins.
Teammates Yang Ruyi (90.50 points) and Han Linshan (87.00 points) secured silver and bronze, respectively. Japan’s Kiho Sugarawa placed fourth with 81.75 points, while Kanon Kondo finished fifth with 72.00 points, both committing DNIs in their final run.
PH Women’s Curling Team Falls Short Against Kazakhstan
Meanwhile, at the Harbin Pingfang District Curling Arena, the Philippine women’s curling team suffered a narrow 5-4 defeat against Kazakhstan in a tense final round.
With the game tied going into the last end, PH skip Kathleen Dubberstein executed a strategic final stone, guided by teammates Anne Bonache and Leilani Sumbillo An, placing it in a strong position. However, Kazakhstan’s skip Angelina Ebauyer, alongside teammates Merey Tastemir and Tilsimay Alliyarova, delivered a decisive shot, knocking out the Filipino stone to seal the win.
The Filipina curlers now hold a 2-2 record and will face Thailand on Tuesday evening, followed by challenging matches against China and South Korea on Wednesday, before wrapping up the round-robin eliminations against Chinese Taipei on Thursday.
PH Men’s Curling Team Secures Second Win
The Philippine men’s curling team delivered a dominant 12-2 victory over Kyrgyzstan late Monday evening, securing their second win in Group A. Led by skip Marc Pfister, the squad will next face Chinese Taipei on Wednesday, hoping to advance to the qualification round before the semifinals.
PH Figure Skaters Set for Short Program Debuts
As the Asian Winter Games figure skating events continue, Sofia Frank and Cathryn Limketkai will compete against 23 other skaters in the women’s singles short program on Wednesday at the HIC Multifunctional Hall.
In the mixed pair skating short program, Isabella Gamez and Aleksandr Korovin took the ice, while Paolo Borromeo competed in the men’s short program. If they secure a top-24 finish, they will advance to the free skate medal event on Thursday.
What’s Next for Team Philippines?
With strong performances across skiing, curling, and figure skating, Team Philippines continues to fight for competitive finishes at the 9th Asian Winter Games. Fans eagerly await the upcoming results as Filipino athletes push their limits on the international stage.
