DAVAO DEL NORTE—The National Capital Region (NCR) went six-of-six in artistic gymnastics to significantly break away from the field only two days into the 2015 Palarong Pambansa on Monday.
And the star of the rampaging NCR team was, again, 13-year-old John Ivan Cruz, who clinched his Palaro gold medal Nos. 10 and 11 at the Panabo City Gym, the only competition venue of the games that is located outside Tagum City’s limits.
Cruz garnered 36.35 points to emerge the boys’ secondary individual all-around champion, further cementing “unbeatable” across his name in Palaro gymnastics.
“We did our best to win the gold, and we ended up bagging two,” said Cruz, the Araullo University pride from Manila, in Tagalog. “But I really want to excel because I want to be a national athlete and I dream of competing in the Olympics some day.”
The Olympic dream looked attainable as Cruz, John Mathew Guevarra and Patrick Poquiz captured the team all-around gold medal.
Completing NCR’s gymnastics domination were Isabella Santa Maria and the girls team, including Jazmine Jane Velasquez and Eunie Ginell Soronia in secondary women’s all-around and John Romeo Santillan in boys’ individual elementary all-around and the duo of Santillan and Aldrin Apuyan in the team competition.
The windfall in gymnastics propelled NCR, the Palaro overall champion since 2005, atop the medal tally board with nine gold, four silver and one bronze medals—numbers that relegated first-day leader Western Visayas (3-3-5) to second place.
The Big City athletes also made their presence felt in chess, where they won three gold medals late Sunday.
Daryl Unix Samantila clinched for NCR its first gold medal in secondary boys’ blitz individual of chess played at the Bulwagan ng Lalawigan inside the Davao del Norte Provincial Capitol grounds. Samantila later teamed up with John Michael Magpily for the team gold medal of the same discipline.
Ynna Sophia Canape and Jesca Docena topped the girls’ secondary blitz team also for NCR.
Southern Tagalog (Calabarzon) moved up the tally board with 3-1-4 (gold-silver-bronze) behind Daniel Quizon and Michael Concio Jr., who finished 1-2 in elementary boys’ blitz individual of chess. The same group also topped the team event for Calabarzon, which earned its third mint from Fide Master Marie Antoinette San Diego in secondary girls’ blitz individual.
Northern Mindanao topped two events and Bicol, Central Visayas and Eastern Visayas dominated one apiece in athletics to break into the gold-medal column early on in the DavNor games, supported by the Tagum Agricultural Development Co. Inc., Damosa Land, Davao Packaging Corp., Davao International Container Terminal Inc. and Pearl Farm Beach Resort.
Eastern Visayas’s Rosemary Olorvida made one of the more remarkable feats in athletics’ secondary girls’ long jump as the 17-year-old Olorvida, who stands only 4-foot-9, showed the fruits of her labor at the Leyte Sports Academy when she leaped to the gold medal in 5.46 meters.
A day after the Palarong Pambansa stood still at noon on Sunday to give way to the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. megafight, the 58th edition of the games formally kicked off with a colorful opening ceremony under partially overcast skies at the sprawling Davao del Norte Sports and Tourism Complex.
Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas graced the colorful ceremony along with Education Secretary Bro. Armin Luistro and Assistant Secretary Tonisito Umali, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Director General Joel Villanueva, Rep. Rafael Anthony del Rosario of the First District of Davao del Norte, Gov. Ramil Hernandez of last year’s host Laguna, Philippine Sports Commission Executive Director lawyer Guillermo Iroy and Philippine Olympic Committee Chairman Tom Carrasco.
“Through this Olympics of the grassroots, we want to show the world that such a peaceful society is possible. Hence, our theme, ‘Breaking Borders, Building Peace,’ is more appropriate than ever,” Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario said in his opening ceremony speech.
“The sports values of fair play, respect and friendship come to life when these young athletes slug it out to earn the coveted Palaro medals. Yet, while they try to outdo each other, they understand their opponent.”
Black bugs in the millions, meanwhile, messed up the DNNSTC on Sunday night. The bugs, which normally feed on rice plants, were apparently roused from their natural habitat after two days of localized rains and were attracted to the lights at the complex.