Huelgas stays strong to win
Just before he crossed the finish line, Nikko Huelgas stood still and made the sign of the cross.
When he (below) took a small step to finally cross the line, he sank to his knees, crossed himself again and pointed to the sky.
Huelgas won the men's triathlon gold at the SEA Games in 2 hr 4min 32 ec, stamping the Philippines' authority in the event for the second straight day.
On Saturday, compatriot Claire Adorna clinched the women's gold.
It was hardly a walk in the park for the 23-year-old Huelgas, though, who admitted he was bothered by second thoughts through most of his race.
The Filipino came out of the 1.5km swimming leg in fourth spot and started the final running leg in fourth position.
Speaking to The New Paper after the win, he said: "I had plenty of doubts throughout the race, especially in swimming, but I kept telling myself to stay calm."
All of his doubts went out the window when he blazed past his rivals within the first lap of the running leg.
He said: "Within the first two kilometres of the run, I knew already that this was my win.
"I really trained for the run. I lost a lot of weight and really stuck to my diet, so this is where I'm strongest."
Huelgas finished 1:03 ahead of silver medallist Rikigoro Shinozuka from Malaysia and 2:29 ahead of Singapore's Loo Chuan Rong.
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