BEACH PINGPONG KING
Dabawenyo Junjun Custodio wins two ‘Araw’ beach pingpong titles
DAVAO City’s very own Junjun “Lapoy” Custodio dominated the 87th Araw ng Dabaw Open Beach Ping Pong Tournament 2024, held at Seagull Whitesand Beach Resort in Punta Dumalag, Matina Aplaya, Davao City over the weekend.
Custodio claimed two titles, first outlasting fellow Dabawenyo Gil Ablanque, 13-9, 13-11, in the men’s singles championship match.
Ablanque settled for the runner-up honors while Joel Umacob placed third.
Custodio teamed up with Shanine Aballe for his second title to rule the mixed doubles event. The Custodio-Aballe duo defeated Carlito Caballero and Ghinlou Baran, 2-1, in their title showdown. The tandem of Elbert Bermudez and Mary Joy Emnacin claimed the third spot.
Meanwhile, Dabawenyos Cesar Barcelo Jr. and Ghinlou Baran also shared top honors in the competition, which was part of the month-long 87th Araw ng Dabaw Sports Festival spearheaded by the Sports Development Division of the City Mayor’s Office (SDD-CMO).
In the men’s singles executive championship match, Barcelo outplayed Novem Isidor, 2-1. Isidor copped the second place while Elbert Bermudez of Tagum City came third.
In the women’s singles category, Baran of Davao Doctors College hacked out a 2-1 victory over Shanine Aballe of Cor Jesu College of Digos to annex the women’s singles crown. While Aballe took second place, Mati City bet Mary Joy Emnacin landed in third.
The top three winners in each category received cash prizes in the tournament organized by the Beach Ping Pong Association of the Philippines (Beppap) and sponsored by Metro Davao Table Tennis Association (Medatta) and sponsored by the city government of Davao, lawyer Vincent “Blue” Ventosa, and Undersecretary Joseph Encabo.