MANILA, Philippines – For the second straight Olympics, Team Philippines earned the distinction of being the best performing Southeast Asian nation.
The Philippines topped all the other countries in the region following a historic Paris Games run that saw it win multiple gold medals in a single Olympics for the first time in 100 years of participation in the quadrennial showpiece.
Artistic gymnastics ace Carlos Yulo delivered those two mints by ruling the floor exercise and vault, becoming the Philippines’ first Olympic double gold medalist.
Boxers Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas added a bronze apiece as the 22-strong Team Philippines matched its four-medal haul in the Tokyo Games, where it also ended up as the No. 1 country in Southeast Asia.
The Paris and Tokyo Games also marked the first time the Philippines won multiple medals in back-to-back Olympics.
Indonesia once again finished behind the Philippines despite producing just as many golds courtesy of weightlifter Rizki Juniansyah and sport climber Veddriq Leonardo.
Parading 29 athletes, Indonesia fell short of tying the Philippines by one bronze.
Meanwhile, Thailand churned out the most medals in the region with six but placed third with a loot of one gold, three silvers, and two bronzes.
Taekwondo star Panipak Wongpattanakit repeated as an Olympic champion to deliver the lone gold of Thailand, which came up short of the top prize twice in weightlifting and once in badminton.
Malaysia ranked fourth with two badminton bronzes, while Singapore got on the board with a sailing bronze for fifth. – Rappler.com