PHL Ciron and Trupa top the duathlon event in Vietnam

THE PHILIPPINES’ John Patrick Ciron and Merry Joy Trupa defied the odds and struck gold in the duathlon event of the 2025 World Triathlon Development Regional Cup and National Championships at the Tam Chuc Complex in Vietnam.

Ranked only 75th in the world, Mr. Ciron came through with a race to remember and topped the five-kilometer (km) run, 30km bike and 5km run event in an hour, a minute and 30 seconds to claim the triumph.

Mr. Ciron, who was 11th in last February’s Asian Duathlon Championships in Manama, Bahrain, ended up a minute and a second clear of heavy favorite Vietnamese Pam Tien San, the Hanoi and Phnom Penh Southeast Asian Games duathlon gold winner, who settled for the silver.

Indonesian Parth Sachin Mirage took the bronze.

Also coming through was Ms. Trupa, who finished second in 1:01:14 after Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Tuy Van, who was 41 seconds faster, was disqualified due to the latter’s failure to serve her penalty for her infraction during the race.

Singaporeans Louisa Marie Middleditch and Rachel Hew ended up pocketing the silver and bronze with times of 1:04:19 and 1:05:01, respectively.

It was a fitting result for Ms. Trupa, who earned a ticket last February to the World Games set for Aug. 5 to 17 in Chengdu, China alongside Filipino triathletes Kim Mangrobang and Franklin Yee.

The team was supported by Go for Gold. — Joey Villar