Filipino-Canadian swimmer Kayla Sanchez delivered on expectations at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) in Thailand. Making her debut for the Philippines, Sanchez spearheaded the national swimming team with remarkable consistency, competing in nine women’s swimming events over six consecutive days and bringing home an impressive haul of three golds and five silvers.
Kayla Sanchez and Her Golden Debut
The 24-year-old stunner captured her first gold medal five days ago, teaming up with Heather White, Chloe Isleta, and Xiandi Chua in the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay. The quartet also made history by ending Singapore’s five-year reign as defending champions while securing the country’s first-ever gold in the event. They carried that momentum into the 4x200m freestyle relay, where they not only set a new national record with a time of 8:11.54 seconds, but also claimed the silver medal.
Kayla Sanchez and company also delivered in the women’s 4x100m medley relay just yesterday, this time with Miranda Renner stepping in for Isleta. The swimmers put up a solid fight and finished a couple of seconds behind Singapore for another silver finish.
Individual Brilliance Bar None
Sanchez also stood out in the individual events, becoming the country’s first multi-gold medalist after claiming her second gold in the women’s 100m freestyle. She clocked 54.82 seconds, while Heather White finished in 55.36 seconds, giving the Philippines a commanding 1-2 sweep. Sanchez then set a new Philippine record in the women’s 50m freestyle, clocking 25.15 seconds and narrowly missing the gold as Singapore’s Xiang Qi finished in 25.03 seconds. The Filipino-Canadian also delivered another strong swim in the 200m freestyle and earned another silver medal.
Sanchez also made her mark in the backstroke event, outlasting Thailand and Indonesia in the women’s 100m to secure her third gold. She also dominated the 50m event, shattering the SEA Games record in the preliminary heats with a time of 28.47 seconds before going on to secure the silver medal in the finals.
A Banner SEA Games with Kayla Sanchez at the Forefront
Thanks to her outstanding performance, the Philippines enjoyed one of its best showings in swimming, now ranking 4th with a total of 3 golds, 9 silvers, and 2 bronzes—a major improvement from the 2023 SEA Games, where they managed just 1 gold, 3 silvers, and 3 bronzes.
