Guermali plotting SEA Games attack

Yacine Guermali feels he can win in the 5,000-meters when he sees action in the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand.Photograph courtesy of Patafa

Filipino-Moroccan Yacine Guermali believes that he has what it takes to clinch his first gold medal when he competes in the 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games from 9 to 20 December in Thailand.

The long-distance runner from Gonzaga University said he is fit and ready for a SEA Games conquest after posting 14 minutes and 35.99 seconds to clinch the crown in the men’s 5,000-meter run of the ICTSI Philippine Athletics Championships recently.

“Sometimes it’s the optimal conditions and in the right competition as well. When you’re in a scenario where there’s a lot of competition and perfect weather, it’s especially difficult,” Guermali, whose mother was born in Solano, Nueva Vizcaya and father Adam, now an American citizen, ran for the Moroccan national team, said.

“In other words, everything comes into place.”

But the national tourney isn’t the actual battle for the 25-year-old runner.

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