Women gymnasts take center stage at artistic junior worlds

MANILA, Philippines — The women, including the Elisabeth Antone-led Philippine team, will take the spotlight in Friday’s resumption of the 3rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics Junior World Championships at the Newport World Resorts’ Marriott Grand Ballroom in Pasay.

Antone, along with Maxine Bondoc, Sabina Tayag and Jellian Bantillan, will take the floor in subdivision 6 along with Panama, Brazil, Argentina, Spain and the Netherlands starting at 8:30 p.m. with an eye at claiming a spot in the individual all-around finals set on Saturday.

It will be the last of the six subdivisions as the first group takes the stage starting at 10 a.m., with the rest following suit every two hours.

It is also in this stage where Antone and the rest of other Filipinas could book a spot in the apparatus finals slated Sunday and Monday.

And the 16-year-old Antone, who captured an individual all-around bronze in last June’s Asian Championships in Jecheon, South Korea, should go all out in making it to the finals and shoot for nothing less than a medal.

Bondoc is another local bet to watch out for as she came out of nowhere and qualified in the uneven bar finals in the same Jecheon meet where Antone snared a medal.

“We’ve high hopes on hour gymnasts,” said Gymnastics Association of the Philippines president Cynthia Carrion.

Karl Eldrew Yulo, the country’s other best hope for a podium finish, was competing along with teammates Hilario Palles III, Anthony Palles and CJ Pernia, as of posting time.