Marestella Torres-Sunang

Marestella Torres-Sunang (born February 20, 1981) is a Filipino long jumper.

In this Philippine name for married women, the birth middle name or maternal family name is unknown, the birth surname or paternal family name is Torres, and the marital name is Sunang.
Marestella Torres-Sunang
Sunang in 2016
Personal information
Birth nameMarestella Torres
NationalityFilipino
Born (1981-02-20) February 20, 1981
San Jose, Negros Oriental
Height157 cm (5 ft 2 in) (1.57 m) (2015)
Weight56 kg (123 lb) (2015)
Sport
Country Philippines
SportTrack and field
Event(s)Long jump
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)6.72 m (2016)
Medal record
Women's Athletics
Representing  Philippines
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Asian Athletics Championships 1 1 1
Asian Beach Games 0 0 1
Southeast Asian Games 4 0 2
Total 5 1 4
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place2009 GuangdongLong Jump
Silver medal – second place2005 IncheonLong Jump
Bronze medal – third place2002 ColomboLong Jump
Asian Beach Games
Bronze medal – third place2016 Da NangLong Jump
Southeast Asian Games
Gold medal – first place2005 ManilaLong Jump
Gold medal – first place2007 Nakhon RatchasimaLong Jump
Gold medal – first place2009 VientianeLong Jump
Gold medal – first place2011 PalembangLong Jump
Bronze medal – third place2015 SingaporeLong Jump
Bronze medal – third place2017 Kuala LumpurLong Jump

Career

Torres-Sunang started long jumping in 1994 in Negros Oriental. Her talent was recognized by her teachers but she often trained on a limited budget, doing jumps on rice husks rather than a proper sand pit.[1]

Torres-Sunang finished fourth at the 2002 Asian Championships and won the silver medal at the 2005 Asian Championships.[2] She also competed at the 2005 World Championships without reaching the final. She also participated in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. In 2009, she surprisingly won the 2009 Asian Championships with a leap of 6.51 m.

Her personal best jump of 6.71 m, achieved at the 2011 Southeast Asian Games in Palembang, is currently the Southeast Asian Games Record.

Torres-Sunang finished 22nd of 32 at the 2012 London Olympic Games, failing to advance to the final.

On April 7, 2016, Torres-Sunang, who came from maternity with the help of her coach and sponsor James Michael Lafferty and nutritionist-wife Carol Lafferty, won the gold medal in the women's long jump event of the 2016 Ayala-PATAFA Philippine National Open Invitationals held at the Philsports Arena. She registered a 6.60 m jump in her 5th attempt, falling 10 centimeters short from the Olympic qualifying standard.[3][4]

In May 2016, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) formally accepted the nomination made by the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) for the universality slot of Torres-Sunang in the 2016 Summer Olympics.[5] However, the slot was junked after the inclusion of marathon runner Mary Joy Tabal in the Rio-bound Philippine delegation.[6]

In July 2016, Torres-Sunang achieved the Olympic qualifying standard in the Women's Long Jump in the Kazakhstan Open and setting a new national record of 6.72 meters, thus making it into the Rio Olympics. This would be the third straight and the final Olympic appearance for the Filipina long jumper, who is the most senior member of the national contingent.[7][8]

Personal life

She is married to a fellow Filipino athlete, shot putter Eliezer Sunang with who she has a son.[9]

Personal bests

(Outdoor)

(Indoor)

International competitions
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  Philippines
2002 Asian Athletics Championships Colombo, Sri Lanka 3rd Long Jump 6.40 m
2002 Asian Games Busan, South Korea 6th Long Jump 6.08 m
2003 Asian Athletics Championships Manila, Philippines 4th Long Jump 6.34 m SB
2003 Afro-Asian Games Hyderabad, India 5th Long jump 6.29 m
2005 World Championships Helsinki, Finland 15th Long Jump 6.46 m
2005 Asian Athletics Championships Incheon, South Korea 2nd Long Jump 6.63 m
2005 Southeast Asian Games Manila, Philippines 1st Long Jump 6.47 m
2006 Asian Games Doha, Qatar 6th Long Jump 6.25 m
+0.2
2007 Southeast Asian Games Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand 1st Long Jump 6.31 m
2008 Olympic Games Beijing, China 34th Long jump 6.17 m
+0.8
2009 Vietnam Open Hanoi, Vietnam 1st Long Jump 6.45 m
2009 World Championships Berlin, Germany 29th Long Jump 6.22 m
2009 Asian Athletics Championships Guangzhou, China 1st Long Jump 6.51 m
2009 Southeast Asian Games Vientiane, Laos 1st Long Jump 6.68 m
2010 Asian Games Guangzhou, China 4th Long Jump 6.49 m
+1.1
2011 World Championships Daegu, South Korea 21st Long Jump 6.31 m
2011 Asian Athletics Championships Kobe, Japan 5th Long Jump 6.34 m
2011 Southeast Asian Games Palembang, Indonesia 1st Long Jump 6.71 m NR
2012 Bangkok Asian Grand Prix Bangkok, Thailand 3rd Long Jump 6.37 m
2012 Olympic Games London, United Kingdom 22nd Long jump 6.22 m
2014 Asian Games Incheon, South Korea - Long Jump NM
2015 Southeast Asian Games Kallang, Singapore 3rd Long Jump 6.41 m
2016 Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 28th Long jump 6.22 m
2016 Asian Beach Games Danang, Vietnam 3rd Long jump 6.22 m
2016 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships Doha, Qatar 8th Long jump 6.03 m
2017 Asian Athletics Championships Bhubaneswar, India 5th Long Jump 6.20 m
2017 Southeast Asian Games Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 3rd Long Jump 6.45 m
2018 Asian Games Jakarta, Indonesia 9th Long Jump 6.15 m
2019 Southeast Asian Games Test Event Tarlac, Philippines 1st Long Jump 6.20 m
2019 Southeast Asian Games Tarlac, Philippines 4th Long Jump 6.16 m
2021 Southeast Asian Games Hanoi, Vietnam 7th Long Jump 5.92 m

References
  1. Reyes, Lai S. (December 7, 2019). "Three-time olympian Marestella Sunang is still a milk drinker at 40". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  2. Asian Championships - GBR Athletics
  3. Leyba, Olmin (April 8, 2016). "Marestella flashes vintage form, boosts Rio bid". The Philippine Star. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  4. "Torres falls 10cm shy of Rio norm". Philippine Daily Inquirer. April 8, 2016. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  5. Co, Adrian Stewart (May 6, 2016). "Long-jumper Torres–Sunang gains Olympics seat". Panay News. Retrieved May 16, 2016.
  6. David, Jean Russel V. (June 17, 2016). "Marathoner Tabal officially Rio-bound". Manila Times. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  7. Terrado, Reuben (July 4, 2016). "Marestella Torres punches ticket to Rio by surpassing Olympic standard in last-ditch attempt". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  8. "Marestella Torres-Sunang vows to make third Olympics her best". Rappler. August 1, 2016. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  9. Terrado, Reuben (April 8, 2016). "Husband sets aside own athletic career to help Marestella Torres book ticket to Rio". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
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