An outstanding national athlete during her prime, former Southeast Asian Games long jump queen and two-time Olympian Elma Muros-Posadas proved recently that she is an outstanding track and field coach as well.
Posadas was acknowledged as Athletic Coach of the Year of NCAA Season 99 after the Jose Rizal University Heavy captured the track and field overall honors with a harvest of six gold, seven silver and three bronze medals in the recent NCAA trackfest held at the Philsports oval in Pasig City.
It was the third straight overall championship for the JRU campaigners co-mentored by husband Jojo Posadas, highlighted by three wins of middle distance runner Frederick Ramirez, two of them in record-breaking time, to be adjudged as the NCAA Season 99 Athletics Most Valuable Player.
A gold medalist in the men’s 4×400-meter relay in the 2023 32nd Cambodia Southeast Asian Games, Ramirez, 26, swept the 200 and 400-meter mints, clocking 21.43 and 48.03 seconds, respectively, to eclipse his previous NCAA marks of 21.43 and 48.03 seconds last year.
Underscoring that his feats were no fluke, the runner anchored a 1-2 finish with Mico del Prado in the men’s 400-meter contest in the prestigious Thailand Open held recently in Rangsit, Thailand.
Ramirez set a new meet record of 46.58 to take the gold while Del Prado had a season best of 46.82 seconds in settling for silver.
Posadas, an eight-time Southeast Asian Games women’s long jump gold medalist, was delighted by the athlete’s progress in both local and international play through proper training and nurturing together with husband Jojo, now the head coach of the national track and field team.
“Jojo and I have always looked for promising athletes whom we could develop and train to excel and, hopefully, become national campaigners in international meets. We are proud that Frederick is among those who have stood out and come through the JRU ranks over the years,” she said.
“Nagpapasalamat ako at dahil sa pag-aalaga nila coaches Jojo and Elma narito ako ngayon at nagta-tagumpay dahil sa kanila,” Ramirez noted in crediting both coaches for his flourishing career.
“As former athlete and now coach, Elma has shown herself to be a superb role model. She is an inspiration for a new sports generation,” noted KG Management Director Jun Basas Esturco, which was why the Magdiwang, Romblon pride is now a part of the sports management company’s stable.
“We recognize the outstanding contributions of Elma for the country and believe that many up and coming athletes in any sport can lessons from her athletic experience,” Esturco added.
Posadas will have the opportunity to showcase her sports prowess anew in the 25th World Masters Athletic Championships slated Aug. 13 to 25 in Gothenburg, Sweden, according to the KG Management official.
Caption: NCAA Season 99 Athletics Coach of the Year Elma Muros-Posadas (left) poses with NCAA Season 99 Athletics MVP Frederick Ramire (center) and husband Jojo Posadas, co-coach of the Jose Rizal University track and field team.
