Inspired Gawilan bags 2nd gold

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand — Ernie Gawilan broke an 18-year ASEAN Para Games record to secure his second gold medal at the 80th Birthday Aquatics Center here on Thursday.

Gawilan, a three-time Paralympian, clocked two minutes and 26.08 seconds in the men’s 200-meter freestyle S7 event for his second gold medal of the tournament that features differently abled bodies.

The 35-year-old tanker erased the previous record of 2:52.11 set by home bet Sittichai Somyut back in the Nakhon Ratchasima Para Games in 2008.

Gawilan said his victory was driven by his willingness to win in the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics and being a father to his soon-to-be-born daughter.

“I hope she will be inspired. I hope his father can be a good influence to him and to his friends. I also hope he becomes an athlete someday — maybe even a swimmer,” Gawilan said.

“Winning in the Paralympics has always been my dream. I’ve been dreaming about it for a long time, and I’ve done everything I can.”

Meanwhile, after winning the country’s first gold medal last Wednesday, Gary Bejino sustained his momentum and clinched another mint in the men’s 200-meter freestyle S6 event after clocking 2:37 to eclipse his previous record of 2:38.55 that he tallied in the Cambodian edition in 2023.

“It’s the 200m event so I needed to pace myself. I just went back to the training I got,” said Bejino, who also grabbed a silver medal last Wednesday in the mixed 4x50 freestyle relay 20 points S1-S10 event with Angel Mae Otom, Marco Tinamisan and Bea Roble.

“In this Para Games, I hope we get to grab more gold medals.”

The 30-year-old Tokyo Paralympics swimmer added a silver to his medal haul after finishing the men’s 50m freestyle S6 event in 34.38 seconds.

More swimmers joined the gold rush with Otom clinching her second gold medal as she ruled the women’s 100 m freestyle S4-S5 event with a time of 1:41.44 while Ariel Joseph Alegarbes dominated the men’s backstroke 100m S14 with 1.02.52