MANILA, Philippines – Two more athletes joined the Philippines’ Olympic roster as hurdlers Lauren Hoffman and John Cabang Tolentino earned their Paris Games berths.

The Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) on late Tuesday, July 2, announced the qualification of Hoffman (women’s 400m hurdles) and Tolentino (men’s 110m hurdles), who will both debut in the Olympics.

Hoffman accomplished the feat by the skin of her teeth as she made the 40-entry cutoff at the 39th spot, collecting just enough points to advance.

It was a tight battle in the women’s 400m hurdles, with 32 athletes hitting the qualifying standard and just eight making it through by world rankings position to complete the field.

Robyn Brown, who ruled the event for the Philippines in the Asian Athletics Championships last year, fell short after ending up at 53rd.

Meanwhile, Tolentino – a Filipino residing in Spain – clinched his Olympic seat with hardly any scare as he finished 30th out of 40 qualifiers in the men’s 110m hurdles.

Hoffman and Tolentino raised the number of Filipino track and field athletes who will see action in Paris to three, with pole vaulter EJ Obiena leading the pack as one of the Philippines’ strongest medal bets.

Like Brown, other Filipino hopefuls Kristina Knott, Eric Cray, and Janry Ubas failed to make the cut as the qualification period closed on June 30.

Gunning for back-to-back Olympic appearances, Knott placed 57th in the 48-entry women’s 200m, while Cray – also eyeing a return trip to the Summer Games – wound up at 50th in the 40-entry men’s 400m hurdles.

Ubas landed at 42nd in the 32-entry men’s long jump.

PATAFA, though, clings on to the chance that Knott gets a reallocated quota place when World Athletics releases its final list of athletes eligible for the Olympics on July 7.

With Hoffman and Tolentino qualifying, the Philippines is set to send 22 athletes to Paris – its biggest delegation in the Olympics in over three decades since 26 represented the country in the 1992 Barcelona Games.

Included in the count are swimmers Kayla Sanchez and Jarod Hatch, whose universality slots are expected to be confirmed by World Aquatics on Wednesday, July 3. – Rappler.com