By MARK REY MONTEJO
There’s no rushing things for hurdler John Cabang Tolentino as he turns his focus to recovery after his maiden stint at the 2024 Paris Olympics recently.
The Spain-based track star failed to run in the repechage round of the men’s 110-meter hurdles event after hurting his knee in the global showpiece.
He finished sixth in the heats after clocking 13.66 seconds and was relegated to the repechage as only the top 3 athletes would earn spots in the semifinals.
Cabang said it was unexpected as he felt great physically a week before the race.
“So I don’t know. At least I ran one time although it was not good enough,” said the 22-year-old Cabang. “All the week was good but two days before the race, I just injured myself.”
But Cabang remained proud of the opportunity to represent the country in the quadrennial meet.
“Yeah, I’m so proud to be part of the national team in the Olympics. It’s a blessing for me [and I’m hoping to qualify again] for the next one.”
If his recovery goes well, the national record holder is eyeing to participate in the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) in Bangkok, Thailand this November.
“So maybe I can go there but I’m not trying to rush because now I’m injured and I want to get healthy as soon as possible,” he continued.
“This year is not that much because I didn’t run but it’s gonna be like 3 weeks or something. I got an MRI also an [echocardiography] and it was like a little cut in the muscle so I couldn’t run,” Cabang added.
The SEAG bronze medalist expressed his gratitude to EJ Obiena’s personal trainer who helped him while dealing with his injury in the contest.
“Antonio, EJ’s PT helped me so much. I have to thank him because if he’s not there, you know what I’m saying? I couldn’t even run the first race so thanks to Antonio,” said Cabang.
Cabang also thanked Obiena for serving as an inspiration to them and promised to support him through ups and downs.
“He’s an inspiration for sure. He’s a big inspiration and we’re going to keep supporting him.”
