Ernie Gawilan delivered the Philippines’ first gold at the 5th Asian Para Games and, according to his coach, secured a spot at the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics. The Davao City swimmer won the men’s 400-meter freestyle S7 event on Monday, Oct. 19, in Nagoya, Japan.

Gawilan, 35, stopped the clock at 4:56.72 at the Rainbow Pool of the Nagoya City General Gymnasium. National para swimming coach Tony Ong said the time was enough to qualify him for the Paralympics in Los Angeles.

Ernie Gawilan Wins Third Straight 400m Freestyle Gold

Gawilan, who has underdeveloped extremities, held off China’s Zhang Yilong, who took silver in 5:01.36. Singapore’s Toh Wei Soong, a familiar rival, finished third in 5:24.23 for bronze.

The win was Gawilan’s third straight in the event and his fifth Asian Para Games gold overall. He won three golds at the 2018 Jakarta Games and another at the 2022 Hangzhou edition.

His swim also lifted a Philippine delegation that had struggled early in the competition. It gave Team Philippines its first gold and a boost for the rest of the Games.

Other Filipino Athletes Face Setbacks in Nagoya

In the morning swimming preliminaries, Edwin Villanueva placed 10th and last in the men’s 400-meter freestyle S8 in 6:22.33. Muhaimin Ulag finished 12th and last in the men’s 200-meter individual medley SM9 in 3:04.30.

At the Izu Velodrome, Patrick Lee and Arthus Bucay finished 12th and 14th in the track cycling 1,000-meter time trial. They clocked 1:14.888 and 1:19.496, respectively.

National cycling coach Norberto October had said the team did not expect a medal on the track. He pointed to the road race as a better chance, possibly even for gold.

In judo, Edmond Montecillo lost by ippon in the men’s J1 -70kg round of 16 at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall. The defeat left Al Jaed Pacheco as the last Filipino judoka, set to compete in the men’s J1 -81kg division on Tuesday, Oct. 20.

Philippine table tennis players also exited singles play at Sky Hall Toyota. Lhey Manginsay, Billy Cartera, Johna Pena and Noriko Batuhan all lost their matches.