With the Rio Olympics just a few months away, the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATFA) is keeping its hopes up that more Filipino athletes will join Fil-Am Sprinter Eric Shaun Cray in the Rio Olympics.
According to reports, Cray is still the only track and field athlete with a sure slot to Rio, but the Association is looking for other possible athletes that meet the standards of the Olympics.
Among the Association’s top picks are University of Santo Tomas Vaulter Ernest John Obiena, 34-year old long jumper Marestella Torres and 17-year old Fil-American sprinter Kayla Richardson.
Obiena bagged a silver medal in the 2015 Southeast Asian Games with a leap of 5.25 meters and is currently training to reach the Olympic standard of 5.7 meters.
Torres, possibly on her final stint, has earned 4 gold medals in the Southeast Asian Games, and one gold, one silver, and one bronze in the Asian Championship Competition; however, she failed to advance to the finals in the 2012 London Olympic games, finishing 22 of 32 participants.
Torres would be the Association’s top pick if no one meets the Olympic standards in the ladies division.
Richardson won the 100-meter dash in the 28 SEA Games last year, making her the youngest champion in SEA Games history at the age of 17; she clocked in 11.76 seconds in the SEA games. She’s currently training to reach the Olympic qualifying time for the 100-meter dash, which is 11.29.
In the PATAFA’s facbook page, they announced that the last day for an International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF)-sanctioned competition where an athlete, whether a national athlete or an unaffiliated one, may join as an Olympic qualifier is July 11, 2016.
Who do you think will join Cray in the Olympics?
