Former Davao City standout Sonny Wagdos defended his men’s 10K crown after ruling the Asics META: Time: Trials Thailand 2025 Sunday, September 14.
The 32-year-old national athlete, representing the Philippines, clocked 31 minutes and 57 seconds (31:57) to beat Indonesia’s Daniel Simanjuntak (32:05) and Thailand’s Pongsakorn Suksawat (32:14), who settled for second and third, respectively.
“Overwhelm gyud kaayo, Ma’am, halos makahilak gyud ko wala ko kasabot sa akong gibati (I was really overwhelmed, Ma’am, almost to the point of tears. I couldn’t even put my feelings into words),” Wagdos, a top athletics varsity athlete at the University of Mindanao (UM) before joining the national team, told SunStar Davao, Monday, September 15.
He admitted his time last year was faster at 31:29, but shared that he only had two months to prepare for this year’s race. His last competition was at the National Open in Clark last May.
He shared that his preparation for the current competition was only two months, noting that his last race was at the National Open in Clark last May.
Wagdos also said he did not expect the victory, pointing out that his season-best time before the race only ranked him fourth.
“Nag-iba ang route this year. Mas bugnaw last year kumpara karon init gyud sa paminaw (The route changed this year. Last year was cooler, but this time it really felt hot),” Wagdos added.
In the women’s 10K, Filipino Joida Gagnao (37:16) took runner-up honors behind Indonesian champion Nefriana Ariance Daik (36:22), while Hong Kong’s Leanne Szeto (37:48) secured third place. MLSA