CAPAS, Tarlac -- Two days after being recognized for saving a fellow competitor, Filipino surfer Roger Casugay bagged gold in the longboard open event of the surfing competition in the 30th Southeast Asian Games at the Monalisa Point in La Union.
Casugay beat teammate Rogelio Esquivel and Indonesia's Arip Nurthidayat -- the surfer he rescued from drowning last Dec. 7 -- to help the Philippines capture its second gold of the competition.
The champion surfer Casugay made waves earlier in the competition for blowing a chance at a sure gold to rescue Nurhidayat, whose leash detached from his surfboard during the final.
Nilbie Blancada had earlier captured the first Philippine gold in surfing in the women's shortboard open. Meanwhile, Esquivel's silver is the country's second after Jevy Mae Agundo settled behind Indonesia in the women's longboard open event.
Daisy Valdez grabbed two bronzes after finishing third in both the longboard and shortboard categories, while John Tokong also snagged a third-place finish after a bronze finish in the shortboard open event.