PARIS Olympic Games veteran Lauren Hoffman, long-distance runner Yacine Guermali, and a couple of overseas-based national team hopefuls are set to headline the opening of the ICTSI Philippine Athletics Championships at the world-class New Clark City Athletic Stadium in Capas, Tarlac, this Thursday, May 1, 2025.
Hoffman, 26, who was hampered by a foot injury during her Olympic debut in Paris last year, will compete in her first meet since then and is fancied to rule her pet event, the women’s 400-meter hurdles, with heats set at 2:10 p.m.
Expected to provide her stiff competition is former Asian women’s 400-meter hurdles champion Robyn Brown, who will see action in a separate heat. Both athletes, who arrived in Manila just two days ago, are anticipated to advance to the finals at 8:10 p.m., setting the stage for an exciting showdown. The competition is supported by ICTSI Sports Foundation, CEL Logistics, and United Auctioneers Inc. ,among other sponsors.
Tokyo Olympian and 2019 Philippine Southeast Asian Games double gold medalist Kristina Knott is also in town and will be the runner to beat in the women’s 200-meter race with heats slated at 4 p.m. and the finals at 6:50 p.m.
Guermali, a 25-year-old cross-country star at Gonzaga University, is targeting a successful defense of one of his two 2024 titles. He enters as the top favorite in the 7 p.m. men’s 5,000-meter finals of the trackfest organized by the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (Patafa) and likewise backed by the Philippine Sports Commission.
Patafa secretary general Jasper Tanhueco disclosed that nearly 1,000 athletes from Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Philippines are participating in the country’s premier trackfest, popularly known as the National Open.
Tanhueco said the meet serves as a vital qualifying event for those aspiring to compete for the country in the 33rd Thailand Southeast Asian Games in December and the Asian Youth Games in Manama, Bahrain, in October.
“Those who excel in the Under-18 category stand a good chance of qualifying for the Asian Youth Games in Bahrain, so we urge them to really go all out so they can represent the country in this prestigious event,” Tanhueco said.
As the ICTSI Philippine Athletics Championships is being held at the World Athletics-certified track for the first time, it has drawn many foreign athletes seeking valuable ranking points for qualification to the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, in September.
The meet begins at 6:30 a.m. with the finals of women’s 10,000-meter walk and the men’s Under-18 5,000-meter walk.
With the scorching summer weather averaging in the 40s, organizers have decided to schedule most of the events in the afternoon beginning at 2 p.m., for the health and well-being of the participating athletes. / RP2 SPORTS