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Source: gmanews.tv

-- Olympian Hidilyn Diaz won’t be around, but another emerging talent is expected to banner Team Philippines in the weightlifting competition of the 25th Southeast Asian Games.

Fifteen-year-old Kelly Kay Roxas will have her first taste of SEA Games action Thursday when she opens her gold medal campaign in the 48-kg category of the weightlifting competition at the Pornsawan Gymnasium here.

After her title conquest in the Asian Youth and Junior Championship in South Korea, hopes
are sky-high that Roxas will hold her own against the region’s finest lifters.

“She’s a fighter," weightlifting team manager Edmundo Gardano said. “She may not be an instant wonder, but we know she’ll win sooner than expected."

Diaz, who made an impression after qualifying in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, begged off after contracting chicken fox days before the biennial meet.

Gardano said Diaz could have easily won a gold medal, but disaster struck and she was placed on sick bay even before making her SEA Games debut.

With Diaz no longer around, attention is expected to be pinned on Roxas and other bright prospects like Jay Mark Perez and Jomar Reyes, especially ranged against countries like Vietnam and Thailand.

“All of them are capable of winning the gold (medal)," he said. “They are young and very diligent in training. They know that good things happen if you work doubly hard."