Fil-American standouts William Morrison and Kristina Knott will have more time to get ready for the Tokyo Olympics.
They devoted a lot of time preparing for Olympic qualifying competitions while in lockdown in their respective area of residence in the United States.
They may have initially felt bad and disappointed with the protocols due to ongoing efforts to stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
But, their continuing effort to adjust to their current situation has kept them focused on their bid to make the qualification standard for the Olympiad.
“At first I was upset when the NCAA was cancelled. It was crazy. It was bad, it was weird. But it just gave more time to prepare,” said Morrison in an online huddle with scribes on Google Meet.
Last February, the Indiana University-based Morrison achieved a distance of 20.21 meters in the shotput in a National Collegiate Athletic Association meet in Indiana.
Morrison, who had 15 meets lined up, did it when he ruled the Meyo Invitational in Notre Dame, Indiana, surpassing the 18.38m he threw to break both the Philippine and Southeast Asian Games record last December.
And he was supposed to improve on the national mark, and seek qualification for the Olympics when Olympic qualification events were cancelled.
On the other hand, Knott, 2019 SEA Games 200-meter queen, found plenty of time to work at her gym in Orlando, Florida while waiting for updated schedule for competitions from the international federation.
“I was totally disappointed. When I saw the numbers, I saw it coming. But then the Olympics, its postponed. So, it’s still gonna happen. It’s just not gonna happen this year. So, it just gives me more time to show my talent and go back to the drawing board and stuff like that,” said Knott.
The two are the remaining bets in track and field who can make the cut to the Olympics and join pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena, boxers Eumir Marcial and Irish Magno, and gymnast Carlos Yulo.
Officials of the Philippine Athletic Track and Field Association, headed by Philip Ella Juico, are also looking at the good chances of Eric Cray, pole vaulter Natalie Uy and marathoner Christine Hallasgo.
Before the pandemic cancelled many meets in the US, Cray ran in the 400 meters and ended the indoor season with a time of 47.80.
Uy, who is the 2019 SEA Games gold medalist and bronze medal winner in the 2019 Asian Championship in Doha, Qatar, recently established a new Philippine indoor record of 4.25 m.
She is now in Kentucky, with coach Becky Holliday helping her. Uy competed at the Pole Vault Summit in Nevada.
Hallasgo was unable to join competitions abroad, but she is staying in shape while in home quarantine in Bukidnon.
