MANILA — Filipino swimming ace Ernie Gawilan delivered a golden double celebration for the Philippines, capturing the country’s first gold medal at the 5th Asian Para Games in Japan while securing a berth in the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics.
The 35-year-old Davao City native stamped his class in the men’s 400-meter freestyle S7 event, clocking four minutes and 56.72 seconds to dominate the competition at the Rainbow Pool of the Nagoya City General Gymnasium.
Gawilan comfortably outpaced China’s Zhang Yilong, who settled for silver in 5:01.36, while Singapore’s Toh Wei Soong took bronze in 5:24.23.
The victory marked Gawilan’s third consecutive Asian Para Games gold medal in the event, reinforcing his status as one of the continent’s most accomplished para swimmers.
It also increased his career haul to five Asian Para Games gold medals, following his remarkable three-gold performance in Jakarta in 2018 and another gold-medal triumph in Hangzhou, China, three years ago.
National para swimming coach Tony Ong confirmed that Gawilan’s winning time had earned him qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics.
“He’s already qualified in the 2028 LA Olympics because of his time,” Ong said.
Gawilan, who was born with underdeveloped extremities, once again demonstrated his remarkable consistency on the international stage, providing a much-needed breakthrough for the Philippine delegation amid a challenging campaign in other events.
While Gawilan celebrated his golden achievement, fellow Filipino swimmers Edwin Villanueva and Muhaimin Ulag failed to reach the podium.
Villanueva finished 10th and last in the men’s 400-meter freestyle S8 with a time of 6:22.33, while Ulag placed 12th in the men’s 200-meter individual medley SM9 after clocking 3:04.30.
The Philippine cycling team likewise encountered difficulties in the track competitions at the Izu Velodrome, more than three hours from Nagoya.
Patrick Lee finished 12th in the men’s 1,000-meter time trial with a time of 1:14.888, while teammate Arthus Bucay placed 14th in 1:19.496.
National cycling coach Norberto Oconer had earlier acknowledged the challenges facing the Filipino cyclists in track events, identifying the road races as their stronger opportunities to challenge for medals.
In judo, Edmond Montecillo suffered an early exit in the men’s J1 -70kg division after losing by ippon to Uzbekistan’s Ibrokhimjon Akbarov in the round of 16 at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall.
Al Jaed Pacheco remained the country’s lone contender in the sport and was scheduled to face Iran’s Mahdi Borchlou in the men’s J1 -81kg division on Tuesday.
The Philippine table tennis squad also endured a difficult outing at Sky Hall Toyota, with four Filipino players absorbing defeats in their respective singles matches.
Lhey Manginsay bowed to South Korea’s Kim Kun-Hea, 3-11, 3-11, 2-11, in the women’s singles Class 9, while Billy Cartera lost to Thailand’s Norakan Chanphaka, 4-11, 3-11, 3-11, in the men’s singles Class 4-5.
Johna Pena suffered a 9-11, 6-11, 3-11 defeat to South Korea’s Kim Seongok in the women’s singles Class 7, while Noriko Batuhan fell to China’s Huang Zhirui, 5-11, 11-6, 3-11, 1-11, in the women’s singles Class 3.
Despite the setbacks across several disciplines, Gawilan’s historic golden performance gave Team Philippines a significant morale boost as its athletes continued their pursuit of medals against Asia’s finest para competitors.
More importantly, his latest triumph strengthened his legacy in Philippine para sports while setting the stage for another appearance on the Paralympic stage in Los Angeles./PN
