BANGKOK, Thailand – Filipina tennis sensation Alexandra “Alex” Eala capped her stellar 2025 season with a dream-come-true moment, clinching the women’s singles gold medal at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games on December 18, 2025. The 20-year-old dominated Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew in the final with a commanding 6-1, 6-2 victory at the National Tennis Development Center in Nonthaburi, ending a 26-year drought for the Philippines in the event and delivering the country’s first women’s singles SEA Games tennis gold since Maricris Fernandez in 1999.
Eala, ranked WTA No. 53 and the highest-seeded player in the tournament, was emotional after the win: “I’m so over the moon. To be able to bring this sort of pride to my country is something I’ve only dreamt about.” She handed her medal to her mother, former swimmer Rizza Maniego-Eala (a SEA Games bronze medalist 40 years ago), in a touching family moment that went viral.
The gold—Eala’s sixth SEA Games medal overall (previously five bronzes)—marks a fitting end to a breakthrough year: Entering 2025 at No. 147, she cracked the top 50, won her first WTA Challenger title in Guadalajara, and notched a US Open main draw victory. Playing with “the country on her back” added unique pressure, but Eala thrived, calling it “a whole ‘nother category” of achievement.
As one of the Philippine delegation’s flagbearers at the opening ceremony, Eala embodied national hope. Her triumph inspires a new generation, proving Filipino excellence on the global stage—one powerful forehand at a time.
Final Match Highlights:
- Score: 6-1, 6-2 vs. Mananchaya Sawangkaew (THA)
- Key Moment: Dominant serving and baseline play; emotional national anthem tears.