FORMER UST Tiger Trackster Carlos de Imus shattered the 15-year national record in men’s 20-kilometer walk during the Asian Race Walking Championships held in Nomi, Japan on Sunday, March 16.
De Imus clocked 1:30:03, surpassing the previous record of 1:30:51 set by Michael Embudo in 2009 at the Milo National Open Track and Field Invitational Championships in Lingayen, Pangasinan.
The new record time also eclipsed his previous personal best of 1:47:00 and the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games record of 1:32.11 held by Indonesia’s Hendro Yap.
De Imus, who played for UST in Seasons 82 (high school) and 85 (collegiate), said he had pre-race jitters after only two months of preparation leading up to the competition.
“Pagdating namin sa Japan, grabe ‘yong time ng mga Japanese. Tinignan ko rin ‘yong sa Southeast Asia, sa Malaysia tsaka sa Indonesia, so chinallenge ko talaga sarili ko kung saan ako didikit,” he told the Varsitarian.
De Imus eventually found his composure before the race and finished in seventh place, ahead of Indonesia’s Bayu Prasetyo and Malaysia’s Khor Jing Hong, who placed eighth and ninth, respectively.
“Pagdating doon, nag-mindset ako na ‘I won’t pressure myself.’ Kasi tuwing pine-pressure ko sarili ko na may papatunayan ako sa larangan na ‘to, para kasing napipigilan performance ko,” he said.
De Imus had previously set the national record of 27:21.67 in the boys’ 5,000-meter walk event in Season 82 as a Junior Tiger Trackster. He then broke another record at the collegiate level in Season 85, clocking 23:05.29 in the men’s 5,000-meter walk.
After completing his bachelor’s degree in fitness and sports management at the UST Institute of Physical Education and Athletics, he considered pursuing another degree to use up his remaining playing years.
However, De Imus, now a member of the Philippine army, said UST coaches Manny Calipes and Joey Ming Lao encouraged him to focus on building a career with the national team.
“Sila coach Manny and coach Ming Lao, malaking tulong talaga sila sa akin kasi doon ako nagka-career development e,” De Imus said.
“Natuto ako tumayo sa sarili ko kasi ang dami akong downfalls sa UST during UAAP. Galing ako sa surgery, both shoulders ko were overused, ang daming punit. Tinulungan nila ako maka-recover and makabalik.”
The race-walker is now aiming for more international exposure, as his record-breaking performance earned him a spot in the Asian Athletics Championships in South Korea in May.
“More exposure before mag-SEA Games kasi nag-rank No. 1 tayo sa Southeast Asia kasi tinalo natin ‘yong Malaysia and Indonesia sa race,” he said. “Kaya ‘to.”
