Pinay cue artist Chezka Centeno at the World Games in China. (Photo from 77billiards.com)
CHENGDU, China — It was heartbreaking loss for Filipina billiards player Chezka Centeno as she fell short of a gold-medal feat in the World Games in Chengdu, China after Chinese Han Yu edged her out, 7-6, in a squeaker in the women’s pool finals.
Centeno battled it out with China’s pool master from 0-3, 3-4 and 4-5 deficits, and could have triumphed on taking control, 6-5, at the 12th rack but she eventually blinked and lost her touch, allowing Han to steal the match and the gold.
Billiards aficionados saw it as sweet revenge for Han, who lost to the 26-year-old Centeno in the finals of the World 10-Ball Championship in Klagenfurt, Austria two years ago.
Not even the supportive presence of former Filipino world champions like Efren ‘Bata’ Reyes, Francisco ‘Django’ Bustamante and Rubilen ‘Bingkay’ Amit could help avert Centeno’s fall. It was also a result that prevented Centeno from joining the ranks of fellow cue artist Carlo Biado and karateka Junna Tsukii as Filipino World Games gold winners.
Biado won his in Wroclaw, Poland in 2017 while Tsukii struck in Birmingham, Alabama three years ago.
Centeno’s silver is the country’s third medal in Chengdu following an earlier silver by Kaila Napolis in jiu-jitsu and Carlos Baylon’s bronze in wushu.
Meanwhile, Paris Olympian boxer and Asian champion Hergie Bacyadan’s own gold campaign bid fizzled out in kickboxing as she succumbed to Portuguese fighter Catarina Dias, 2-1, in their semifinal showdown in the women’s K1 -70-kilogram class.
As of press time, Bacyadan from Kalinga Apayao will go for the bronze medal versus Serbian Aleksandra Krstic, who lost to Israeli Polina Grossman, 3-0.