At 14, Zoey Jhanine Sangutan already has a résumé that stretches from local Davao competitions to international gymnastics meets in Thailand and China. The Grade 8 student of Davao Christian High School-V. Mapa Campus added another milestone on Sept. 12 when the Davao Sportswriters Association (DSA) named her Rising Athlete of the Year at the 2026 Davao Sports Heroes Night at Rogen Inn.
The recognition capped a steady climb that began with local competitions and accelerated with her breakthrough at the 2024 Palarong Pambansa and medal-winning performances in trampoline gymnastics and women's artistic gymnastics. The DSA recognized Sangutan for her international performances, including four gold medals and the individual all-around title in Bangkok, and another four gold medals and an individual all-around title in Shanghai.
Sangutan said the award came as a surprise. “I am very happy and honored to receive this great recognition as the Rising Athlete of the Year,” she said. “I feel inspired to work harder in my training because I know that my hard work will eventually pay off.”
The recognition is particularly striking because Sangutan's gymnastics journey started in an unlikely place: YouTube. During the pandemic in 2020, when she was 8, she watched gymnastics videos after finishing her schoolwork and tried to follow the exercises performed by gymnasts she admired.
“I thought gymnastics was really cool. I wanted to learn how to do all that cool stuff, too,” she said.
Sangutan already had a natural attraction to movement. She loved jumping, doing rolls, and trying to flip on her bed. During the pandemic, she turned that energy into regular strength and flexibility exercises, practicing almost every day for about a year. Her mother eventually noticed her progress and asked if she wanted to learn gymnastics properly. Sangutan readily agreed and began online lessons with a Manila-based gymnastics club.
Her early competitive results showed that the hobby was becoming something more. In 2023, Sangutan won two gold and one silver medal at the Davao City Athletic Association meet, followed by four gold and one silver at the Davao Region Athletic Association meet. She continued that progress in 2024, collecting three gold and two silver medals at DCAA and two gold and three silver at DAVRAA.
Then came the Palarong Pambansa in Cebu City in July 2024, where Sangutan won bronze in floor exercise in women's artistic gymnastics. The national podium finish became an important marker in her development and set the stage for her expansion into another discipline.
At the 2025 Batang Pinoy in General Santos City, Sangutan competed in trampoline gymnastics and won gold in power tumbling and bronze in double mini trampoline. The results showed the range of an athlete who could compete beyond artistic gymnastics.
Her biggest international breakthrough came in 2025. At the Bangkok Gymnastics Invitational in Thailand in March, Sangutan won four gold medals and the individual all-around title in women's artistic gymnastics. Four months later, she produced another dominant performance at the Shanghai Gymnastics Club Invitational in China, again winning four gold medals and the individual all-around title. Those results became the centerpiece of her DSA recognition.
Yet Sangutan does not describe her success as a solo effort. She said her mother, father, and sister have kept her going when training becomes difficult. While her own curiosity sparked her interest in gymnastics, her family's encouragement has helped her stay committed when progress becomes challenging.
“They remind me to stay positive, work hard, and believe in myself, especially when things don’t go as planned,” she said.
She also dedicates the award to God and her family, whom she considers her sources of strength and inspiration.
Now, the Rising Athlete of the Year is already preparing for her next test. Sangutan will compete in trampoline gymnastics at the 2026 Batang Pinoy in Bacolod City in December. She is also training for the DepEd Games-Davao City Athletic Association Meet in women's artistic gymnastics, to advance to the Palarong Pambansa.
She is receiving additional training under a European coach at Davao GoldenTwist Gymnastics Training Center as she works to sharpen her technique and prepare for bigger international competitions.
Davao GoldenTwist also received a Plaque of Recognition from the Davao Sportswriters Association during the Sports Heroes Night for its role in promoting and developing gymnastics and its athletes in Davao City.
For Sangutan, the journey from watching gymnastics videos at home to standing on international podiums has happened quickly. But the Rising Athlete of the Year award does not signal the finish of that journey. At 14, she is already looking toward the next competition, the next routine, and the next opportunity to see how far her gymnastics can take her. MLSA