PHL TRIATHLETES STAY ON TRACK
MARION KIM MANGROBANG and Kim Kilgroe—the country’s 1-2 punch in women’s triathlon— are keeping themselves in harness amid the global lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Mangrobang, according to Triathlon Association of the Philippines (TRAP) President Tom Carrasco, has returned to Portugal since last month, while Kilgroe rerouted to the US from Mauritius where she joined the African Cup also in March finishing at fifth place.
Mangrobang and Kilgroe finished 1-2 in the 30th Southeast Asian Games in Subic in December and with John Leerams Chicano also winning the men’s gold medal, kept the country’s stranglehold of the sport in the region.
“Everyone’s okay in the triathlon family although the athletes are strictly quarantined,” Carrasco told Businessmirror on Tuesday. “The two aspirants for the Tokyo Olympics— Mangrobang and Kilgroe—are in good condition.”
Carrasco said Mangrobang is staying in a private apartment in Portugal while awaiting the reopening of the Desmor training camp in Rio Major next month.
“She’s training on her own,” Carrasco said. As for Kilgroe, she opted to fly to California from Mauritius after the pandemic caused global travel restrictions.
“I’m in Los Angeles, currently no restrictions preventing me from training solo as normal. Hope you are well!” Kilgroe told Carrasco in an e-mail on Monday.
“I was stuck in Mauritius for some time after the race dealing with cancellations and decided to reroute to the US after airline shutdowns and lockdowns began,” she said. “I’m going to ride it out here [California] until things settle down and I can return.”
“Zero restrictions on my training here since I have open water access and so far I haven’t skipped a beat of work,” she added.
Mangrobang, ranked 193rd in the world, and Kilgroe (No. 204) are hoping to land slots in the Tokyo Olympics which were moved back to July 24 to August 9, 2021. Fifty-five men and as many women will race in the Olympics.
Carrasco said the locally based national athletes are supervised by their assigned coaches.
“They are doing mainly indoor training— stationary bikes, threadmill running and lots of calisthenics,” Carrasco said. “From time to time, they do joint indoor workouts via teleconference facilities.”
The TRAP head thanked the Philippine Sports Commission for releasing in earnest the athletes’ allowances for February and March. “They are able to buy their needs,” he said. Carrasco also hailed the sport’s Asian and international federations for regularly keeping in touch with national federations.
“Measures are being undertaken to manage all triathlon activities worldwide without sacrificing the safety and well-being of our coaches, athletes and technical officials,” he said, adding that the International Triathlon Union (ITU) suspended all activities until June 30 and is currently reviewing qualification rules for the Tokyo Games.
Carrasco said ITU President Marisol
Casado of Spain will hold a virtual meeting with Asian federation heads on Wednesday to discuss the sport’s current status.
“The triathlon community will be resilient and adjusting well to this difficult times,” he said.