Leonard Grospe, gold medalist at the 6th Asian Beach Games. POC Media Pool
Leonard Grospe delivered the Philippines’ second gold medal in the Asian Beach Games after ruling the men’s high jump event.
With the victory, the Philippines matched its gold haul from the 2016 edition in just the second day of competition, boosting its campaign to third place overall.
As of Friday, the 45-nation medal tally has the Philippines at 2-0-1 (gold-silver-bronze), trailing United Arab Emirates (2-1-1) and host China (4-2-1), with five days still remaining in the Games’ return after a decade-long hiatus.
Grospe, 24, cleared 2.05 meters on his first attempt — a decisive leap that secured the gold at Phoenix Island. He prevailed via countback over Po-Ting Yeh of Chinese Taipei and China’s Hao Zhang, who settled for silver and bronze, respectively.
“Sobrang happy. Unexpected din po kasi sobrang dulas po talaga,” said Grospe, noting the challenging conditions on sand. “It’s my first time. First time din ang event na high jump sa beach. So, nag-a-adjust pa tayo for that kasi masyadong madulas.”
Earlier, Alexandra Luz Enriquez opened the country’s gold medal haul by ruling the women’s 63kg jiu-jitsu event, while Kaila Napolis added a bronze in the -52kg division.
In beach volleyball action at the Tianya Haijiang Venue Cluster, the pair of Khylem Progella and Sofia Pagara dominated Uzbekistan’s duo, 21–7, 21–3, to improve to 2–0. Fellow Filipinas Sunnie Kalani Villapando and Gryzelle Joanice Matibag also moved to 2–0 after a 21–10, 21–11 win over Mongolia.
Back at the Sanya Bay Yuhai Club, Annie Ramirez and Emily Thomas advanced in the women’s 57kg jiu-jitsu division, each scoring submission victories in their respective bouts.
Meanwhile, the men’s jiu-jitsu campaign saw early exits, including Yman Baluyo, who bowed out in the Round of 32.
In dragon boat, the Philippine men’s team placed fifth in the 100m event at the Sanya River, narrowly missing a finals berth. Despite the result, team captain Ojay Fuentes remained optimistic, citing valuable lessons gained as the squad eyes stronger performances in the 200m and 400m races.