1 record broken, 1 nullified at close of PH Open trackfest

MANILA, Philippines – One national record was broken while another was nullified. 

These were major events capping the National Open Invitational athletic championships Saturday, April 6, at the Philsports track oval in Pasig City.

Using a new set of poles only for the second time, pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena set a new national record in winning his event by clearing 5.50 meters on his first try, creeping closer to the Olympic qualifying standard of 5.70 meters.

The 20-year-old UST electronics communication engineering student attempted to clear 5.60 meters but failed as his left shin barely grazed the bar in all of his 3 attempts at the height. 

“It was only my second time to use my new poles, but we’re slowly getting there,” said the strapping 6-foot-2 athlete, whose old set of 6 poles were broken after they were apparently mishandled by the airline carrying them back to Manila following his stint at a Singapore meet in early March. 

Obiena said his next crack at the Olympic qualifying record would be at the Singapore Open at the end of the month “and hopefully I will have adjusted fully to my new poles.” 

His accomplishment somewhat softened the sting suffered by the Philippine Air Force squad of Edgar Alejan, Isidro del Prado Jr, and Filipino-Americans Brandon Donovan and Eric Shawn Cray, whose sizzling time of 40.54 seconds in winning the men’s 4×100-meter late Friday night smashed an 11-year-old national record.

But even before they could relish the feat, trackfest organizers nullified the time and disqualified the after it was discovered that Del Prado, the son of the illustrious 400-meter runner Isidro del Prado Sr, had violated an “entry” rule. 

Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association secretary general Renato Unso explained that Del Prado did not start in one of the events that he was entered – the men’s 200-meter race – “so the team was disqualified and its winning time nullified.”

“You must first take part in the event you declared initially before proceeding to compete in a national event, violating the rule of succession,” added Unso. “Sayang naman kasi ang tinakbo nila, bagong national record pa naman (Their effort was wasted, which is a great loss because it could have been a national record).”

Unso said this mistake could have been avoided had the team’s head coach, Master Sergeant Bernard Buen, told  Del Prado of his shortcoming. “He (Buen) should have been on top of the situation.”

Rappler was unable to get Buen’s reaction to his ward’s faux pax because he could not be found at the competition site. 

Had their victory stood, the Airmen’s clocking would have shattered the old mark of 40.55 seconds set by national team of Arnold Villarube, Ralph Waldy Soquilon, Alberto Salcedo, and Harry Dagmil, earning a silver medal in the 2005 Philippine Southeast Asian Games. 

The country’s first Olympic qualifier, Cray, a double gold medalist in the 2015 Singapore Southeast Asian Games, was earlier involved in a minor furor when he tried to assemble a quartet for the relay with athletes from different squads. 

“Of course we could not allow that because it would also violate international rules,” Unso said. “So in the end,  he wound up with teammates from his same team so was allowed to run.”

Singapore SEA Games silver medalist Melvin Guarte, who flopped in his forte, the men’s 800-meter run on Friday, bounced back to rule the men’s 1,500-meter finals in a time of 3 minutes and 57.26 seconds, holding off his earlier tormentor, Elbren Neri, who took the silver (3:58.80).

Fil-Am Jessica Lyn Barnard, who won a bronze in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase in the Singapore SEAG, handily won the women’s 1,500-meter race (4:55.19) while Army’s Narcisa Atienza took the women’s shot put gold (12.43). – Rappler.com