But the Filipino swimmers finished second in their best outing yet since the 1991 SEA Games held in the Philippines, getting eight gold, three silver, and 18 bronze medals for a total of 18,according to a report issued by the delegation on Wednesday.
On the way to second place, two Filipino-American swimmers broke records set in previous SEA Games – Daniel Coakley in the 50-meter freestyle and James Walsh in the 200-meter butterfly.
Finishing third was swimming powerhouse Malaysia with seven gold, eight silver, and eight bronze medals for a total of 23. The Filipinos exceeded expectations.
Even host Thailand was lost in the wake of the gutsy Philippine performance and could only finish fourth, with five gold, seven silver, and eight bronze medals for a total of 20.
Swimming also produced the country's top individual performer in 23-year-old Miguel Molina, who won three individual golds – 200-meter breaststroke, 200-meter individual medley, and 40-m individual medley – and another gold as part of the team that topped the 4x100-meter medley relays.
In the last SEA Games in 2005, Molina won three golds in the same individual events.
Coakley also set a national record in the men's 50-meter freestyle, whose winning time of 22.76 also earned him a slot to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The great grandson of Olympian Teofilo Ildefonso, Coakley made it a double celebration in anchoring the men's relay team, breaking a 16-year drought in the event since Eric Buhain did the same with the RP quartet.
Powered by Buhain's six-gold haul, the Pinoy tankers had an outstanding 10-3-5 output in 1991, which proved to be the summit for this sport that saw several lean years following that outing.
Shortly after the swimming association was taken over by former RP standout Mark Joseph, the sport once again showed signs of life as the locals fished out a 4-5-6 output in the 2005 SEAG.
Sharing relay honors with the Fil-Hawaiian Coakley were Ryan Arabejo, who won two individual golds (200-meter backstroke) and Walsh (200-meter butterfly).
Walsh, a pre-med student at the University of Florida, showed he still has plenty to spare Tuesday evening a few minutes after winning the men's 200-meter butterfly, with the help of the RP medical team led by noted chiropractor Dr. Martin Camara.
Head coach Pinky Brosas, the architect of the swimming team's success in 2005, attributed the superb showing of his charges to meticulous planning, strategy, and lots of tender loving care.
"We were planning for this Games even after the 2005 SEAG. Even then that was a high level event and we knew our work was cut out for us," Brosas said. Brosas also mentored Buhain and Akiko Thomson in the late 80s and early 90s. "Most of these swimmers were together in Manila two years ago so they knew each other," Brosas said.
"There were some newcomers. Being the senior ones, we made Molina and Walsh as their leaders. With Miguel and JB (Walsh) showing the way, we tried to keep a family atmosphere among the coaches and swimmers. We bonded together. We stayed loose and tried to make it fun."
Brosas, a 1972 Munich Olympics veteran, also said they had to make tough decisions for the overall good of the team, like when the coaching staff decided to drop Kendrick Uy from the 100-meter freestyle leg of the 400-meter medley relay in favor of Coakley. "Everything we do here was to meet our team goals," Brosas said. "Everyone understands his or her role and we are fortunate because of that." - GMANews.TV
