Philippine trio seize historic sepak takraw silver in Asian Games

NAGOYA, Japan — The Philippine women’s doubles team settled for silver after falling to Vietnam, 15-8, 15-4, in the gold medal match of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games on Tuesday at the Mizuho Park Gymnasium.

Abegail Sinogbuhan, Jean Marie Sucalit and substitute Nelly Jay Saron struggled to match Vietnam’s pace as Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, Nguyen Thi Khanh Ly and Le Thi Hong Lien took control of the final.

The Vietnamese side began to pull away midway through the opening set, leaving the Philippines unable to close the gap. Vietnam carried that momentum into the second set, where it established an early advantage and never looked back.

Despite missing out on the gold, the Philippine trio still made history by delivering the country’s best-ever finish in sepak takraw at the Asian Games.

Their run to the final was highlighted by a 2-1 record in Group B, where the Philippines defeated host Japan and India before losing to South Korea. The team then secured its historic place in the final after sweeping Laos, 15-12, 15-10, in the semifinals.

Philippine sepak takraw team captain Abegail Sinogbuhan admitted to having mixed emotions after the team exceeded expectations and secured a historic silver medal in the women’s doubles event.

“Mixed emotions po kasi hindi talaga namin ine-expect na makaka-abot kami sa finals. Talagang hinilinh nalang namin kay Lord na sana this Asian Games makakuha kami ng medalya kahit any color. Pero natapos po itong doubles event namin, binigay sa amin ni Lord itong silver medal. Sobrang sarap sa pakiramdam,” she said. 

Jean Marie Sucalit reflected on the struggles the team went through in previous competitions, saying the silver medal made the hardships and disappointments along the way even more meaningful.

“Sobrang nag flashback lahat ‘yung pagod, failures namin sa mga nakaraang competitions. Yung feeling na ang sakit sa part namin na tuwing uuwi kami ng Pilipinas, wala kaming dalang medalya. Ngayon awa ng diyos may dala na kami. Silver pa.” 

The silver also gave the Philippines its second medal in sepak takraw at the Aichi-Nagoya Games. The men’s regu team had earlier secured a bronze after reaching the semifinals.

For Sinogbuhan, Sucalit and Saron, the result capped a campaign that put Philippine women’s sepak takraw on its first Asian Games final and podium appearance.

The medal is also the Philippines’ third silver of the Games, joining Jean Claude Saclag’s silver in men’s traditional 65kg MMA and Gilas Pilipinas Women’s U-23 3x3 silver.

Sepak Takraw Pilipinas president Karen Tanchanco-Caballero expressed pride in the team, highlighting the years of hard work and sacrifices that went into their historic silver-medal finish.

“Nothing but great pride and honor. All their hardworks not just months but years leading to this. We needed this break for a long time. I’m just so proud, that’s why I was very specific that I wanted to really sit beside them as team manager, not as an NSA President. Because I want to share this journey with them. All the sacrifices that the’ve been through.”

While the gold remained out of reach, the historic silver marked a significant result for Philippine sepak takraw and added another podium finish to the country’s campaign in Aichi-Nagoya. (POC Media Pool)

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