The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
Kim Mangrobang, SEA Games double gold medalist, and triathlon champion Fernando Casares will compete in the 11th World Games duathlon on July 15 and 16 in Birmingham, Alabama.
Triathlon Association of the Philippines (TRAP) President Tom Carrasco announced that Mangrobang, Casares and John “Rambo” Chicano qualified for the World Games in Alabama even before the Vietnam 31st SEA Games.
“I’ll be happy if we’re going to take a crack at the top 10,” Carrasco said. “The World Games are a high-level international non-Olympic competition—and duathlon is not an Olympics sport. We are very glad and honored to qualify.”
Mangrobang qualified after finishing No. 3 overall and the best-placed Asian woman at the Bahrain Asian Duathlon Championship last March 12. Karin Nieuwenhuijsen from The Netherlands and Aleisha Wesley of Australia ruled the women’s elite category.
Casares, on the other hand, was No. 6 overall but was third among Asians to also qualify for the worlds, while Chicano got an invitation because of his world top 200 ranking.
The 30-year-old triathlete from Santa Rosa, Laguna, is regarded as queen of SEA Games triathlon winning two gold medals—triathlon and duathlon—in Vietnam. She also won the triathlon gold medals at the 2017 Kuala Lumpur and 2019 Philippines SEA Games.
Other Filipino athletes who qualified for the World Games that feature non-Olympic sports were 31st SEA Games double gold medalist Rubilen Amit and US Open Champion and SEA Games 9-ball king Carlo Biado of billiards, world and SEA Games champion Philip Delarmino of muay, back-to-back SEA Games titlist Annie Ramirez of jiu-jitsu and Junna Tsukii of karate.