49. Partner-Perfect: PATRICIA B. INGAYO, All-Around Tennis Ace (active mid 1950s-1971)

The versatile tennis player PATRICIA Bengson INGAYO (b. 14 Apr. 1937/d.11 Jul. 2013) possessed such depth of skills that allowed her to play and win medals in Singles, Women’s Doubles, Mixed Doubles and Team events. At the peak of her performance, she medalled consecutively in 3 Asian Games campaigns in all tennis events, and figured in the finals of several editions of the Philippines Open International Championships, founded in 1918 (later known as PHILTA International Championships).

Patricia Yngayo was born in Ermita, Manila,  the daughter of Lope Yngayo, and his wife, Salud G. Bengson who were married on 9 Jan 1935. Originally from Cebu, Yngayo went to the University of the Philippines and played school tennis. He became a national and Metropolitan tennis champion who played in the Davis Cup with Guillermo Aragon against Austria in May 1928. He later became a coach and trained the Philippine Davis Cup team. Lope Yngayo was certainly an influence for Patricia to take up the sports of tennis, and her early competitions revolved around tennis tournaments organized by community clubs.

1958 was the turning point of Yngayo’s tennis career when, in the finals of the Philippine International Open Tennis Championships, she barged into the Women’s Single’s event and placed second to the great Desideria Ampon—who would be, for the next years, her one and only greatest rival. In the next years --1959, 1960, 1966, 1969, 1971—Ampon would relegate Yngayo to a runner-up finish, except in 1970 where American Ceci Martinez beat her in the finals. Yngayo never won the top women’s singles title in this Manila-based tournament.

Yngayo and Ampon were named as the Philippine delegates to the women’s tennis competition at the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo, Japan. She and Ampon made it to the Women’s Doubles---and bagged the Silver, won by Japan’s  Sachiko Kamo and Reiko Miyagi. In the Mixed Doubles, she and partner Miguel Dungo reached the finals and claimed the Silver medal. It was in the Doubles Events that Yngayo was most successful in the Asian Games, winning medals in succession in Tokyo, Jakarta and Bangkok through her perfect partnership with Desi Ampon.

In the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta, Yngayo finally annexed an individual medal to her collection, winning Bronze in the Women’s Singles, shared with compatriot Desi Ampon, after 2 Japanese—Akiko Fukui and Reiko Miyagi—who won Gold and Silver, respectively.  The Yngayo-Ampon tandem were also triumphant in the Women’s Doubles and the Team Event, taking home the Bronze.

Her final 1966 Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand yielded 2 precious Silvers in the Women’s Doubles (with Desi Ampon) and Mixed Doubles (with Federico Deyro), and Bronze in the Women’s Team. In all, Yngayo—in tandem with Ampon, Dungo and Deyro—amassed 8 medals—4 Silvers and 3 Bronzes in the quadrennial games. Add to that her individual Bronze in the Women’s Singles—and that makes her the most productive Filipina tennis player in the Asian Games to date.

The bemedalled Patricia Yngayo may not have won an individual tennis title or an individual tennis gold in her lifetime, but as they say, victory is not just about coming home with Golds. It is also about coming back stronger, rebounding with resilience in the relentless pursuit of excellence. In her competitive years, Yngayo demonstrated all that, and more—proving her status as one of the few all-around women tennisters of the country. The accomplished tennis ace passed away at age 76, after a lingering illness.

SOURCES:

The Philippine Athlete, official publication of the P.A.A.F. October issue

Photo of Patricia Yngayo: Chino Trinidad + FB page

Lope Yngayo: https://mail.db4tennis.com/players/male/lope-yngayo

Asian Games Tennis medal winners Tokyo1958

 https://www.olympiandatabase.com/index.php?id=318659&L=1

Tennis at the 1962 Asian Games, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennis_at_the_1962_Asian_Games

Philippines at the 1966 Asian Games, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippines_at_the_1966_Asian_Games

Photos of Miguel Dungo, Federico Deyro: https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LCXZ-18F/federico-deyro-1928-2006

47. JOSEPHINE “Big Jo” DE LA VIÑA and Her Still-Unbroken 54-Year-Old Discus Throw Record.

The discus throw record of Josephine De La Viña has stood for 54 years, without a doubt, the most enduring record in Philippine sports history. It is for this reason that “Big Jo” is regarded as the best thrower that the country has ever produced, and at her peak, ranked 13^th best discus thrower in the Olympics. She was born on 20 April 1946, the eldest child of American-Mexican Norman and Carolina de La Viña of New Lucena (now, Sta. Barbara) Cebu.

De La Viña recalls that hers was not an athletic family. Her father used to be a professional bowler, and that was it. For some reason, she became attracted to softball, her first sport, which she played as a student of Labangon Elementary School. But her affair with the Grecian discus began when she enrolled at the Cebu Institute of Technology High School that was renowned for producing the most successful women athletes of the Philippines—the likes of Asia’s track queen Inocencia Solis, hurdler-sprinter Francisca Sañopal, javelin thrower Vivencia Subido, and broad jumper Visitacion Badana. From throwing balls,  Josephine discovered her natural flair in the throwing events of discus, javelin and shot put. She caught the eye of Dean Amancio Alcordo and Vicente Tigas, who put her on a scholarship and began training her right away.

The hefty teen, who would grow to an intimidating height of 6 feet, with a weight of 180 lbs,  earned a Bronze at her first ever international competition–the 1st Asian Track and Field Championship in Tokyo–with a heave of 37.39 meters. At the 1963 National Open Track and Field competitions at the Rizal Stadium. She set the audience gasping with an incredible heave of 41. 987 m (137 ft. 9 inches) in the women’s discus throw.

At age 18, she was named to the National  Olympic team, where she put on a show by improving her throw to 42.27 meters at the Tokyo Games in 1964, good enough for 18^th place. De La Viña got even better when she joined the 1965 National Open Championships in Manila, registering a remarkable 158 feet, 9 inches (48.387 m.), topping the Asian mark of Japanese Chizoko Tanaka (150 feet, 7 inches, or 45.89 m.)

The next year, De La Viña was the proud flag bearer at the 5th Asian Games in Bangkok (1966) . Competing against favored Japanese amazons, “Big Jo” held her own and threw the discus to an Asian record-shattering 47.58 meters (156 ft. 1 ¼ inches)—which was not even her best throw–to give the Philippines its first Gold. She had been averaging 162 feet in practices, which would have been enough to place her among the top 6 in the world Olympics.

The civil engineering student would go on to participate in two more Olympic quests in Mexico (1968), where she would improve her ranking to 15^th  of the world’s best. De La Viña was also entered in the Shot Put event, but did not start, opting to focus on her pet event, the Discus.

She went into deep training in the U.S. in between the Olympic years under coach Bob Lawson, and it was there that Big Jo set a personal best and a new Philippine record that would—to this day—remain unsurpassed.  At the 1971 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships that took place on 10 July at the Memorial Stadium on the campus of Bakersfield College in Bakersfield, California, De La Viña threw the discus to an astounding 54.71 meters (179 feet, 5 inches) defeating USA’s Carol Jean Moseke L. Frost, the 1967 Pan American Games gold medalist, and 1968 Olympian.

No other Filipina thrower has come near to this record; in fact, the second-best throw also belongs to De La Viña at 53.92 meters, achieved during the qualifying rounds of the Munich Olympics. She almost qualified for the finals, landing in 13^th place, but only 12 athletes moved forward to contest the medals.

To date, after 54 years, De La Viña is the only Filipina to reach--and exceed--the 50 meter mark in the Discus Throw event. For perspective, Dorie Cortejo’s silver medal heave of 45.26 m.  at the 1989 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games is over 9 meters behind De La Viña’s best. “Big Jo” passed away on 4 November  2011in Iloilo, leaving behind an unbroken record that is expected to endure for many more years, earning her a special place in the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame in 2018.

SOURCES:

The Philippine Athlete, P.A.A.F. Official Publication, 1966

“Josephine de la Viña”, olympedia, https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/74514

Quintana, Buddy. “A Most Charming Champion”, The Sunday Times Magazine, 1967

“Josephine de la Viña, Aiming for a Medal”, The Sunday Times Magazine, 13 Oct. 1968 (Cover)

43. PH Olympian HEDY GARCIA: The Teenage Girl Who Swam Across the Laguna Lake

The day after Christmas in 1965, a long-distance swimming competition was organized by Dr. Clodualdo Manas, manager of the Nonino Swimming Club of Laguna, involving crossing the Laguna Lake. From the starting point of barrio Pipindan,  Binangonan, to the coastline of barrio Cuyab in San Pedro Laguna, the total distance was about 18 kilometers.

Dubbed as Swimathon 1965, the local challenge was reminiscent of the English Channel swim contest where athletes swam across the Channel unaided by an escort. The event attracted 22 participants—from former Olympians to a 10-year-old boy swimmer. The race started on the Pipindan shore at 7:30 a.m. on a clear Dec.26 morning, after the water temperature was checked.

By 12:30 p.m. 16 of the original 22 starters had given up, including 10 year old Noli Manas, fished out from the water by a motorboat. The remaining swimmers plodded on, stroke after stroke.

First to make it to the finish line after five hours and five minutes was high school student Loreto Garcia, a UAAP champion swimmer from Far Eastern University, with a time of 5 hours, 5.5 minutes . But what caught the crowd’s attention was the second placer—15-year-old high school girl,  Hedvig “Hedy” Garcia, who timed in at 5 hours, 40 minutes and 8 seconds.

So impressive was her time that Hedy trounced two former male Olympians: Bana Sailani, who failed to finish, and the Tokyo Olympian Rolando Landrito of the Philippine Air Force (6:17.0 hrs.). She was also way ahead of 31 year old long distance swimmer Ricardo Cuenca (5:43.2 hrs.) who would set an endurance record of 47 hrs. swimming from Nasugbu to Manila Bay in 1969.

Hedy. who stands only 5 feet 2.5 inches tall, was an amateur swimmer from Far Eastern University. She was born on 8 Feb. 1950 in Pakil, to a sports-loving family. Her fantastic Laguna feat was just part of her intensive training that led her to improve her times---and a slot in the Philippine swimming team. Less than a year later, she was sent to the 1966 Asian Games from Bangkok, and won a team Silver, by placing second in the 4 x 100 m. Medley relay swim team that included Rosalina Abreu, Helen Elliott, and Gertrudes Lozada.

By the time the Olympic year came along, Hedy was the holder of 8 Philippine bests in 100 m., 200 m. backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly records, The breaststroke and the individual medley became her specialties.  

She went on to qualify for a place in the Philippine Olympic swimming team--the youngest member at 18-- that competed in the 1968 Mexico Olympics. The talented swimmer swam in four events: 100 m. free (7th in her heat), 200 m. breaststroke (4th), and both the 200 m. (3rd)  and 400 m. individual medley (7th).

Hedy made it as well to her 2^nd Asian Games, and returned to Bangkok, Thailand in 1970 to claim a team Bronze Medal in the 4 x 100 m. Medley relay event, along with Luz Arzaga, Susan Papa, and Luz Laciste.

 After retiring from competitive swimming, Hedy turned to coaching, mentoring the University of the Philippines Women’s Varsity Swimming Team from 1978-1984. She continues to live in her hometown of Pakil, Laguna.

SOURCES:

Benjamin Afuang, Photos by Ben Santos, “The Long Swim Across Laguna Lake”, The Sunday Times Magazine, 9 January 1966 issue, 24-27.

Olympedia, https://www.olympedia.org/lists/114/manual?page=6

Philippines at the 1966 Asian Games, Wikimedia.com

Philippines at the 1970 Asian Games, Wikimedia.com

26. Asia’s Amazon of Speed: MONA SULAIMAN, active 1957-1966

The greatest Filipina track athlete of the 60s decade was, without doubt, MONA SULAIMAN (b. 9 Jun. 1942/ d. 21 December 2017) came into the track scene beginning in 1957, when the stocky 15 year old ran barefooted in several races during a Cotabato fiesta and wiped out competition. Sulaiman, daughter of policeman Kudelat and Aminan Sulaiman, had actually played softball in her elementary school where her running ability was spotted by a school official. Sulaiman, who was described in write ups as “the pride of the fierce Mangulamas tribe of Cotabato”, was hustled off to regional meets in Mindanao and the Visayas, and won those too.

Doubting Thomases were quick to dismiss her wins lightly, but in the national championships of 1960, she was pitted against the renown Inocencia Solis, the reigning 1958 Asian Games gold medalist—and trounced the veteran trackster. Not even Solis’ much ballyhooed, nationally-ranked Cebu Tech team mates, could come close to Sulaiman’s clockings.

Sports critics and observers were silenced, and they soon acknowledged that the sheer  power and brawn of  Sulaiman was superior than the smooth, running style of Solis. Another undeniable edge was Sulaiman’s versatility—she also excels in the throwing events  --shotput (Personal Best 41.2 ft.) , discus ( PB 115 ft. 5 and 5/8 in.), javelin and in the multisport pentathlon.

Sulaiman was soon installed as the new queen of sprints, and her next stop was no less than the 1960 Rome Olympics. That experience was an eye-opener for the 18 year old, and the thought of competing against the world’s best must have unnerved her. Though her performance was reported as “dismal” by the local press, she did fairly well, reaching the 100 meter dash quarterfinals and finishing in 6^th place with a time of 12.4 seconds. Her heat was ruled by the great American Wilma Rudolph, who would go on to win Gold in record time. In the 200 m., Sulaiman timed in at 25.8 secs., 4^th in her heat, won by Poland’s Barbara Janiszewska, who would win Bronze in the 4x100 m. relay.

Returning home, Sulaiman worked on improving her form and technique, and her dedicated efforts rewarded in 1961 when she bannered the Philippine campaign at the Malayan Open in April. She won 4 Gold medals for the 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash (a new Malayan record), 4 x 100 m. women’s relay, and the Shotput (another new record), helping propel the Philippines team to 2^nd place overall. That same year, she had also annexed a new Philippine record in Javelin throw.

Coming into the 4th Asian Games in Jakarta in August 1962, Sulaiman looked formidable with her personal best times. She lived up to expectations by ruling the two centerpiece sprint events, registering a new games record of 11.93 secs. for the Gold in the century dash, way ahead of 2 Japanese, Ikuko Yoda (Silver, 12.35 secs.) and  Takuko Inokuchi (Bronze, 12.39 secs.). It was the same story in the 200 meters as Sulaiman prevailed with 24.63 secs. followed by Japan’s Haruko Yamazaki (25.86 secs.) and Ceylon’s Nirmala Dissanayake (secs. 25.92 secs.). 

She grabbed her 3^rd Gold when she teamed up with veteran Inocencia Solis, Francisca Sanopal and Aida Molinos to an upset win over the Japanese team that registered the same games record of 48.67 secs. But Sulaiman was not finish with her medal romp as she had to rush to the field event where she was also entered in the shotput. She won the Bronze with a throw of 11.97 meters.

1962 will be remembered as the peak of Sulaiman’s sporting career. She was the first Filipina to complete a rare golden sprint double at the Asiad. With her spectacular triple victories on the track and a medal at the field events, Mona Sulaiman became the most bemedalled Filipino athlete of the delegation, winning 4 of the total 7 Golds harvested from Jakarta. She was hailed as a local heroine upon her return home and everyone predicted more success in her future.

In April 1964, in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics, she was sent to the U.S. to undergo scientific training under coach Bill Bowerman of the University of Oregon. By July,  Sulaiman reported a notable improvement in her athletic prowess, She even managed to shave off .2 secs. from her 11.8 secs. record, lowering it to 11.6 secs., leading local officials to believe that she could be a potential winner of the pentathlon.

This was seconded by 2-time (1948, 1952) Olympic decathlon champion Bob Mathias, who, after sizing her up in Manila, concluded, “She can run, throw weights, and jump too. There is not one girl athlete in the world who could be as good as Mona in all these events.”

But by the time the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo unfolded, Sulaiman stuck to her pet events—100 m., 200 m. sprints, and the 4 x100 m. women’s relay. Her 2^nd Olympic stint was to  be another major disappointment. In her 100m. heat, she placed 7th and last, with a slow time of 12 seconds flat. In the 200 m., she placed 4^th in her heat, at  25.4 seconds. She anchored her team in the 4x 100 m. relay race, and finished second slowest at 48.8 secs. Thus ended Sulaiman’s Olympic campaign in Japan. 

Only 22 years old, Sulaiman continue to train, ready to redeem her poor performance by defending her titles in the 1966 Asian Games, slated in Thailand.  Sulaiman, as expected, was named as a member of the Philippine team. That year though, the organizers introduced the controversial gender testing among athletes. 

Sulaiman rejected the said test, claiming at first it was against her Muslim faith. But for the record, Sulaiman said she was suffering from flu at that time, so she decided to forego with the medical check-up though she was already in Bangkok.

Sulaiman’s refusal spawned many speculations about her real gender, which media played up back in the Philippines. Hurt and humiliated from being barred from the games, she withdrew from the sports and lost interest, thus putting an end to an illustrious athletic career that could have been longer.

MONA AT THE MOVIES, Courtesy of Video 48

She worked in the private sector and even ventured into film as a bit player. She did at least 3 action movies: Santa Fe (1973), Virgina Soliman (1974), and Interpol Malaysia 5 (1975), all with actor Jun Aristorenas. In 1990s, she was given employment by the Philippine Sports Commission as a consultant for the national athletics team. The PSC her inducted into its Hall of Fame in January 2016. Marvelous Mona Sulaiman, Asia’s first lady of speed, passed away on 21 Dec. 2017 at the East Avenue Medical Center after a lingering illness, at age 75.

SOURCES:

“First Lady of Speed”, Sunday Times Magazine, 25 March 1961, pp. 36-37

“Filipino Speedsters in Malaya”, Mirror Magazine, 26 Aug. 1961, p 26

“Asian Games Hopeful”, Sunday Times Magazine, 5 Aug. 1962

1964 Tokyo Olympics supplement, Sunday Times Magazine, p. 15

“Marvelous Mona”, Sunday Times Maazine, 19 Sep. 1964,

Official Report of the 1960 Olympics (Rome) program, LA84 Digital Collection

Official Report of the 1964 Olympics (Tokyo) program, LA84 Digital Collection

Mona Sulaiman, Asia’s fastest woman of early ’60s, dies at 75, Dec 22, 2017 12:13,

https://www.rappler.com/sports/191974-mona-sulaiman-obituary-track/

Philippines at the 1962 Asian Games, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippines_at_the_1962_Asian_Games

Athletics at the 1962 Asian Games,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1962_Asian_Games

Mona Sulaiman movies: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4705025/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Movie posters of Santa Fe, Interpol Malyasia 5, courtesy of Video 48

Mona Sulaiman, Wikipedia.com

20. DESIDERIA AMPON: The Filipina Tennis Trailblazer (active 1941-1971)

The most celebrated Filipina tennis player known for her long and successful career on the hard court is the multi-titled DESIDERIA “Desi” AMPON of Manila (b. 19 Sep. 1924). She was the daughter of Felix M. Ampon and Josefa R. Hermoso. At her peak, she was crowned the women’s singles  champion at the International Philippines Championships,  a record 11 times.

Desi Ampon truly was destined to be a tennis star; her father was a tennis pro and a coach. Her older brother, Felicisimo Ampon, reigned as the country’s No. 1 male tennis player of all times, who has made triumphant appearances at the Davis Cup, French Open, and in the Asian Games.

She started her career in local competitions at a time when the sport was being played by a handful of Filipinas. Minda Ochoa, one of the earliest female champions, helped popularize the sport but she retired in the late 30s. Even her return to the scene in 1950 failed to spark renewed interest in tennis.

Ampon began making waves in Philippine Tennis Association (PHILTA)-sanctioned matches and by 1941, she ranked 5^th behind leader Liberty Solisa. Soon, sports watchers kept their eye on this other petite Ampon as her rise in rankings continued. She continued playing in city playgrounds like the Dapitan court, often practicing against her sister Petronila.

In 1950, she teamed up with Felicisimo to reach the finals of the Philippine tennis mixed doubles, defeating Sumant Misra-Mrs. Checkett, 6-2, 7-5. They finished as runner up to Spaniard Pedro Masip and the Argentinian Mary Weiss.

But Ampon’s full potential was still to be realized, and that came auspiciously in 1955, when she finally won her first National Title in the women’s singles. 1956 was again, another sterling year, winning 3 titles in that year's National Open Tennis Championships: Singles, Women's Doubles (with Lourdes Ang) and Mixed Doubles (with brother Felicisimo Ampon).

In the next 3 years, she would earn 2 more titles, capped by her representation of the Philippines in the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo, Japan—the first time that Tennis became an official medal event.

Sixty tennis players from 15 nations contested the medals at the Games with  Japan winning 3 Golds , followed by the Philippines with 2, but with more medal finishes (10 medals vs. Japan’s 4). Desideria Ampon snagged the Silver in the Women’s Singles behind Japan’s Sachiko Kamo, and another Silver, in Women’s Doubles (with Patricia Yngayo), won by the Japanese tandem of Sachiko Kamo and Reiko Miyagi.

With brother Felicisimo Ampon, Desideria grabbed a Bronze medal in the Mixed Doubles, behind another Philippine team, Raymundo Deyro and Patricia Yngayo). In all, she came home with 3 medals—not bad at all for her Asian Games debut.

 As a prelude to the next 1962 Asian Games, she entered the 1961 Malaya Open Lawn Tennis Tournament in Kuala Lumpur. She was pitted against Japan’s national champion. Reiko Miyagi but lost out to place 2^nd. But she came back strong in the Mixed Doubles, teaming up with brother Felicisimo to vanquish Japan’s Miyagi and Hitoshi Hiroshe 6-3, 9-7.

In Jakarta, she continued to achieve milestones by surpassing her previous Asian Games medal output, winning 4 Bronzes:  Women’s Singles (shared with Patricia Yngayo), Women’s Doubles (with Yngayo) , Women’s Team, and Women’s Mixed Doubles (with Miguel Dungo).

In her last Asian Games in Bangkok 1966, she added 2 medals to her collection: Silver, in Women’s Doubles (with Yngayo), and Bronze, Women’s Team. In all, she amassed 9 medals from 3 Asian Games, tying with Indonesian Yayuk Basuki, who achieved that number in 4 editions.

Meanwhile, her run as a Philippine champion continued unabated after 1958, as she captured the 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, and 1971 national tennis crowns, as well—an unprecedented eleven titles in all.

There is very little we know of Desideria Ampon upon her retirement after 3 decades of tennis playing. But what we do remember is the important legacy she left behind, that paved the way for generations of Filipinas to take up the sport, and excel like her—the likes of Marissa Sanchez, Jennifer Saberon, Dyan Castillejo, Francesca La’O, and now, Alex Eala. the highest-ranked Filipino female singles player in WTA Tour history,

SOURCES:

PROGRESS REPORT Magazine, 1955 issue

“Malayan Singles Champion” MIRROR Magazine, 26 Aug. 1961, p. 31

Tennis Forum, https://www.tennisforum.com/threads/biographies-of-female-tennis-players.497314/page-267?post_id=81956633#post-81956633

10. LOLITA R. LAGROSAS: The Philippines’ All-Around Iron Woman (active 1958-1970)

Before Elma Muros, no other female athlete was as well-rounded as LOLITA R. LAGROSAS  whose track career spanned over two decades, involving three major sports disciplines—High Jump, Broad Jump (now Long Jump) and Pentathlon.  On the side, she even played Basketball for the National Women’s Team!

Born in Naawan, Misamis Oriental on 24 August 1938,  her versatile athletic skills in provincial meets—she was an excellent jumper, hurdler, sprinter and thrower-- paved the way for her relocation to Manila, where Far Eastern University gave her a scholarship.

In her prime, the five foot four and a half, 113 lb.  Lagrosas went through 5 hours of training every day. This served her very well indeed, as she gained attention when, at age 20, she snagged a Silver in her favorite favorite High Jump at the 1958 Tokyo Asiad, behind the Japanese entry.

In 1965, right after winning Gold for High Jump and Long Jump at the National Open at Roxas City, she went to Taipei and copped 3 Gold Medals in her 3 events, and was adjudged “Most Outstanding Athlete” in the Nationalist China-Philippines dual meet. A few days after returning to Manila, Lagrosas had to fly back to Taipei to serve as a guard to the Philippine basketball team at the Asian basketball championship.

In the next Asian Games she appeared in, she earned 2 more medals for High Jump: 1966 Bangkok (Silver) and 1970 Bangkok (Bronze). Also at the 1966 and 1970 Bangkok Asiads, this Filipina Iron Woman won a pair of Bronzes in Pentathlon, the counterpart of the Men’s Decathlon, which involved completing 5 gruelling events for points: High Jump, Shotput, Hurdles, Long Jump and 200 m. dash, contested in 2 days.

Lagrosas was also a two-time Olympian, having competed in the jumping and pentathlon events at the 1964 Tokyo and 1968 Mexico Olympics.  Her personal bests: High Jump – 1.69 m. (1966); Long Jump– 5.71m. (1970); Pentathlon – 4131 points (1968, accomplished at the Mexico Olympiad, putting her in 25^th place in a field of 33 ). After retiring from the sports, Lagrosas and served as a long time Head Coach of the track and field team of De La Salle University.

SOURCES:

List of Philippines Asian Games Medalists: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-time_Asian_Games_medal_table

“Bumper of Bronzes”, The Sunday Times Magazine, 1 Jan. 1967, p. 20-23

“Long Distance to Fame”, The Sunday Times Magazine, 13 Oct. 1968, p. 18

“Stars in Sports”, The Sunday Rimes Magazine, 1 Jan. 1969, p 28

“Meet the Athletes”, The Sunday Times Magazine, 6 Dec. 1970, p. 6-7