DAVAO City rider Maiquel Jawn "Mikee" Teh Selga, who won two bronze medals in the 28th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games 2015 in Singapore, resumed wakeboard training last week to prepare for the tryouts set for the upcoming 30th Philippines SEA Games.
Selga, 19, returned to training at Deca Wakeboard Park, Deca Homes Residences Resort (DHRR) in Barangay Tacunan, Tugbok District. It can be recalled that that park was temporarily closed by management for rehabilitation, leaving her nowhere else to train for quite sometime.
"Hindi pa po ako sure na makakalaro sa SEA Games. Pero naga-training po ako for tryouts (I am not certain about playing in the SEA Games but I am training for the tryouts)," she said.
Schedule and venue of the national wakeboard team tryouts, however, have yet to be determined.
The San Pedro College (SPC) Senior High School graduate, who will be an incoming Multi-media arts freshman at the Malayan Colleges Mindanao, said she expects a stiff qualifying tournament for the national team since it will no longer be a boat-pulled wakeboard in this year's edition of the biennial meet, which she competed in the past two SEA Games, but the regular one.
"Mas mahirap kasi marami po magsali (It's tougher because there are more regular riders who will be joining the tryouts)," she added, unlike the boat-pulled competition that left her the only country's female entry in Singapore and Malaysia SEA Games.
She shared having to really focus more on her rigid training now that classes are over. The busy schedule of being a graduating student and the rigors of complying requirements kept her away from the wakeboard park.
Selga said, "Bago lang talaga ako nagka-free time (I only found time to practice just recently)."
The 2019 SEA Games wakeboard competition will be held at the Deca Clark Wakeboard Park.