By Reynald I. Magallon
BANGKOK — A strong finish propelled the Philippine men's ice hockey team toward a convincing 7-2 victory over Malaysia in their opening match of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games here at the Thailand International Ice Hockey Arena on Wednesday night, Dec. 10.
BANGKOK — Kayla Sanchez may have already experienced the highest of competitions in the Olympics but the 33rd Southeast Asian Games brought a different level of pressure on the Filipina tanker.
The 24-year-old swimmer, who had already won a medal in the Olympics as part of the Canada’s women’s relay team, admitted that she was feeling the nerves heading into the competitions at the SAT Swimming Pool.
Good thing, she officially made her debut with the relay team, allowing her to be more relaxed as she got her feet wet with the SEA Games action.
“Very special. I love all my teammates. My whole family is here. I'm very excited to make the country proud,” said Sanchez who was joined by Chloe Isleta, Heather White and Xiandi Chua.
“My first race was a relay so it wasn't just me. It was a team. And they made me less nervous and it was much more fun as a first race to be with the relay,” she added.
Of course, it was also a huge boost that the women’s 4x100-meter relay team not only allowed Sanchez to test the water but also break the ice for the Philippine swimming team after bagging the federation’s first gold medal.
The PH tankers clocked 3:44.26, almost two seconds clear of silver medalist and swimming powerhouse Singapore which recorded 3:46.53.
“I’m excited. I like the race, I like the chase so I was just really excited to get in the water and swim,” Sanchez said as she talked about the come-from-behind win.
Sanchez is expected to bag more medals for Team Philippines as he vies in nine more swimming events.
“The atmosphere is the same. It's a smaller competition, and meets go by really fast. I'm still learning, I have my teammates here to teach me and to keep me grounded. So I'm excited for the rest of the competition. And one for the rest of the team,” she added
