All eyes will be on gymnast Carlos Yulo as he shoots for his first SEA Games gold medal.

Powerful start Opening of the 30th edition of the Southeast Asian Games lived up to its hype of being Olympic-level with a spectacular show that had even President Rodrigo Duterte dancing to the beat. YUMMIE DINGDING@tribunephl_yumi

ANGELES CITY — President Rodrigo Duterte led the much-anticipated opening of the 30th edition of the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games at the 50,000-seat Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

The Philippine Arena was packed with spectators from 11 participating nations.

The opening of competitions showcased a performance that highlighted the beauty of a “united” Philippines and featured a strong thematic thread of inclusivity, from complex warrior dances to the many struggles of the host country’s marginalized sector.

The audience witnessed the parade of around 8,750 athletes from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor Leste, Singapore, and Vietnam.

The opening rites also showed the simultaneous lighting of the cauldron by Filipino boxing champions Emmanuel Pacquiao and Nesthy Petecio at the New Clark City.

The Philippines hosted this year’s SEA Games for the fourth time. It also served as host for the 1981,1991 and 2005 editions of the biennial sports event.

As the glamor and pageantry of the opening ceremonies of the country’s first hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games in 14 years start to flicker, the national athletes kick off their gold rush in a bid to clinch the elusive overall crown.

Tokyo Olympics-bound gymnast Caloy Yulo and triathletes Kim Mangrobang and John Rambo Chicano would be the first to plunge into action as hostilities in this prestigious biennial meet shift to high gear today in different venues here, in Subic and in Metro Manila.

The 19-year old Yulo makes his debut in the biennial meet and shoots for his first SEA Games gold medal in the men’s individual artistic at the start of the gymnastics competition set at 2 p.m. at the newly refurbished Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

Yulo, who won the gold in this year’s World Championship in Stuttgart, Germany that earned him a ticket to the Summer Games next year, banners the campaign of the Filipino gymnasts, who are eyeing at least 10 golds in the competition.

“The team is doing great. We’ve been working so hard for this,” Gymnastics Association of the Philippines president Cynthia Carrion said. “I’m asking the whole country to pray for the athletes not to get hurt, don’t get injured and just for them to be their best. I just want the Filipinos to cheer for the Filipinos.”

Aside from Yulo, SEA Games veteran Reynald Capellan and the promising Cristina Onofre will also lead the campaign of the host nation in Day 1 of the gymnastics competition where tickets are reportedly sold out.

Also banking for the hometown support are national triathletes Mangrobang and Chicano, who are the favorites to rule their respective events to be held at the Subic Bay Boardwalk in Subic, Zambales.

The 28-year old Mangrobang is the defending champion in her event, which fires off at 8 in the morning. She trained in Portugal under the watchful eyes of Brazilian coach Sergio Santos for this competition.

“She’s been improving step by step and mentally, she’s now matured and confident,” said Santos, who competed in four Olympics during his prime and once handled the Iranian national triathlon team.

“She knows Subic well, she’s acclimatized and I know an athlete racing at her homeland becomes a lot stronger, extra motivated because of all the media, the family and the public will be pushing her to win the race,” he added.

Kim Kilgroe is the other Filipina racing in today’s triathlon competition that could be the source of the country’s first gold in the 11-nation conclave.

The men’s category starts at 6 in the morning with Chicano, who finished second to Nikko Huelgas in the 2017 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Huelgas won’t be defending his title as he will be competing in the mixed relay category.

“The mindset is to win the gold. That’s the color we’re looking at,” said Chicano, who is eyeing to win his first gold.

Also today, the Philippine men’s polo team guns for the silver medal with a win against Malaysia tonight here at the Aquatics Center.

I’m asking the whole country to pray for the athletes not to get hurt, don’t get injured and just for them to be their best.

Action in the men’s hoop event of sepak takraw also fires off today at the Subic Gym, which was hailed by International Sepak Takraw Federation Inc. director general Abdul Kader as the best venue of the sport in the meet’s history.

Another potential gold mine would be weightlifting, which starts today over at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium inside the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.

With the Thai lifters being barred from seeing action, expect the Filipinos to run wild with Olympic silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz and fellow Olympian Nestor Colonia leading the young guns composed of Mary Flor Diaz, Ellen Rose Perez, Margaret Colonia, Elreen Ann Ando, Kristel Macrohon, John Fabuar Ceniza, Dave Lloyd Pacaldo and Jeffrey Garcia.

Diaz’s golden bid, however, will start tomorrow, while Flor and Ceniza kick off their campaign today.

Kurash, a folk wrestling originating from Central Asia, also fires off today at the Laus Group Convention Center in San Fernando, Pampanga with Filipino fighters Rick Jayson Senales and Joshua Tablan leading the country’s bids in the -90kgs and +90kgs categories, respectively.

Hostilities in badminton and arnis get underway at the Muntinlupa Sports Complex and Angeles University Foundation in Pampanga, respectively.

Arnis is a potential major source of medals for Team Philippines as the sport is the country’s traditional martial arts and offers 20 golds.