MANILA, Philippines – Calabarzon stayed on top of the Palarong Pambansa 2023 medal tally leaderboard at the end of day two on Wednesday, August 2, with 20 golds, 22 silvers, and 16 bronzes as of 9:05 pm.

Western Visayas, however, is now right on the leading region’s tail also with 20 golds off a 16-gold eruption for the day, but with just 15 silvers and 11 bronzes to settle for close second.

Athletics carried Region 6’s rally to the top, with 13 golds combined across all four divisions: elementary boys and girls, and secondary boys and girls.

Calabarzon, meanwhile, stayed on top by a hair partially thanks to elementary and secondary boys swimming, which collectively now have seven golds over the first two days.

Favored NCR, which finished third in the first-day returns of the weeklong national sporting event, is stuck in the same spot so far, but is right on the cusp of overtaking the two chart-toppers with 16 golds, 18 silvers, and 16 bronzes to its haul.

Elementary girls swimming notably boosted the capital’s campaign in the first two days with four golds so far, two coming in record-setting fashion from 12-year-old phenom Krystal David.

Central Luzon, which surged to second place on the first day off an eight-gold start, plummeted to sixth after a costly zero-gold day two finish.

The Davao region is now fourth with 11 golds, while Northern Mindanao edged Central Luzon with 9.

Historically, NCR had always been a long-standing dynasty in the Palarong Pambansa, holding all overall championships based on available data.

Calabarzon and Western Visayas, meanwhile, had always been jockeying for second place, and if the medal tally trend holds after day two, the 2023 Palaro could be looking at another traditional podium with no new regions to challenge the consistent winning trio. – Rappler.com