The Philippines wrapped up the 10th Aero Gymnastics Asian Championships in style on Friday, closing out a five-medal campaign on home soil with a silver in the team senior aero dance and a bronze in the senior mixed pair events at the Tagaytay CT Velodrome. The haul, delivered in front of a hometown crowd, capped off a milestone international debut for a squad that entered the meet with modest expectations and left with hardware to spare.

Home Debut Sparks Pleasant Surprise

Performing to a lively medley of Filipino ethnic dances capped off with the popular “Budots” beat, the Filipino campaigners sprang a pleasant surprise in their international debut, scoring 16.60 points to secure silver. Seasoned veterans Arcanio Cadlos and Charmaine Dolar anchored the squad, which also included Enrico Ostia, James Dominick Yray, Jhon Jeoffrey Cañones, siblings Dorothy Grace and Danielle Asuncion, and Princess Johanna Pama. The team finished behind powerhouse Vietnam, which claimed gold with 17.250 points.

The Philippine squad added another medal soon after, edging Mongolia by just 0.250 of a point to take bronze with a tally of 16.475 in the senior mixed pair event. Cadlos and Dolar, silver medalists at last year’s 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, returned to the floor for their signature event and walked away with a second medal of the meet, posting 18.30 points behind a 1-2 finish from Vietnam.

The country’s youth squad chipped in as well, bagging a bronze in the youth aero dance event with a score of 16.700 in overnight results. That team featured Enoch Ryan, Jan Basmayor, Mikhaela Ladaran, Sean Emmanuel, Leona Shendrach, Jane Hallel Ramos, Anne Miguel Martin, Casey Meniano, Nathalya Facultad and Anne Haizzah Meniano.

For Pama, the moment carried extra weight given how unexpected it was. “Super happy kami kasi lahat ng sacrifices namin naging sulit. Super unexpected kasi last entry po kami pagkatapos nag-silver po,” she said, savoring her first medal in international competition.

Coaches and Organizers Praise Strong Showing

In all, the host nation delivered one gold, one silver and three bronze medals across the two-day meet, organized by the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines and sanctioned by the Asian Gymnastics Union. National coach Alena Rius did not hide her pride in the team’s performance. “Masaya na po ako at naka silver and bronze kami sa senior events. Pinaghandaan namin talaga ito,” she said.

Rius singled out the bronze from Cadlos and Dolar as especially significant, given the caliber of competition they faced. “Lalung-lalo na po yung bronze ni Charmaine and Arcenio kasi mga world-rated yung Vietnamese na nag-gold and silver kaya malaking bagay yung medalyang talaga,” she added.

GAP president Cynthia Carrion was equally pleased, both with how smoothly the event ran and with how the national team performed. The championships drew 12 Asian countries and close to 500 athletes and officials. “This is a credit to our organizing team, and most of all the participants we talked to gave us the thumbs up. We really stepped up for this one,” Carrion said.

She credited the home-court advantage for helping the athletes rise to the occasion. “We gave them the opportunity performing in front of the hometown crowd, and I am glad that they delivered superbly despite our modest expectations. They competed against the best in Asia and performed well,” she added.

The championships were presented by the Philippine Sports Commission and backed by the Philippine Olympic Committee, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, and the Tagaytay City government under Mayor Brent Tolentino.