Elma Muros

Elma Muros was born on January 14, 1967 in the town of Magdiwang, Romblon in Sibuyan Island. She is the 6th eldest child in a brood of nine. Her mother is a former athlete who competed in the 400 meter sprint in her youth. She attended the Roosevelt College in Rizal under a scholarship granted by then Rizal governor Isidro Rodriguez.[2] Later on, she was granted a scholarship in University of Baguio, then soon after transferred out to Far Eastern University[2]

Muros is involved in track and field competitively as early as when she was 14 years old. At that time, she was scouted by local officials looking for potential athletes for the Southern Tagalog Regional Athletics Association sporting meet.[2]

Muros-Posadas won a total of 15 gold medals in the Southeast Asian Games,[3] a record number in the athletics competition which she jointly holds with Jennifer Tin Lay of Myanmar.[4]

Muros won eight South East Asian Games titles in the long jump the first at the age of 16 in 1983. At one point, she also dominated the sprints winning both the 100 and 200 metres in the 1995 Southeast Asian Games.[2]

She was also a competitor for the Philippines in the long jump event at the Olympic Games in 1984 and 1996.[5] She represented her country at the World Championships in Athletics on four occasions: in the 400 m hurdles in 1991, the long jump in 1993 and 1995, and the 100 metres in 1997. She was also a five-time participant at the IAAF World Indoor Championships, competing in 1985, 1989, 1993, 1995 and 1997 in sprints and long jump.[6]

She was a two-time medallist at the Asian Games, taking the long jump bronze medal at the 1994 Games as well as a 400 metres hurdles bronze medal in 1990.[7] She won four medals in the long jump at the Asian Athletics Championships over the course of her career, winning silver medals in 1983 and 1989, then bronze medals at the 1993 and 1995 editions.[8]

She holds several Filipino records: 57.57 seconds for the 400 m hurdles, 5346 points for the heptathlon (set at the 1998 Asian Games), 3:40.9 minutes for the 4×400 metres relay, 25.05 seconds for the indoor 200 metres and 6.11 m for the indoor long jump.[9]

She was a two-time PSA Sportsman of the Year, winning the award in 1993 and 1995. She attended Far Eastern University in Manila.

Since her retirement in 2001,[3] Muros-Posadas has appeared several times on the reality television show Survivor Philippines. In 2011, Elma landed a role in her very own biographical and loosely-based independent movie directed by Paul Soriano, "Thelma", who won best director in the 30th Luna Awards with his direction in this movie. Elma's life and a combination of many provincial athletes and their lives and struggles were portrayed by famous Filipina actress, Maja Salvador, who won Best Actress in the 30th Luna Awards played the lead role for, "Thelma", as Thelma. The movie won Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography in the 30th Luna Awards.

On April 23, 2017, Elma received the first-ever Palarong Pambansa Lifetime Achievement Award during the national games’ opening ceremony. According to Rappler's Fidel Feria's article, Department of Education Assistant Secretary, Tonsito Umali said that the "8-time gold medalist for long-jump in the Southeast Asian Games – was chosen by virtue of her winning “local and international competitions, and for inspiring local athletes” through her success. "[10]

In 2016, Muros was reported to be working at Brent International School in Biñan, Laguna, University of the East and Jose Rizal University where she along with her husband train the youth in sports.[1] In early 2017, Muros along with former boxer Onyok Velasco was tasked by the Philippine Sports Commission to aid the country's grassroots program.[11]

Elma is married to George "Jojo" Posadas, an Ilonggo coach of the Philippine athletics team with whom she has a daughter and a son. Muros-Posadas took a break from sports, opting to skip the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain due to her first pregnancy and the birth of her only daughter. Elma's first born, Klarrizze (b. 1992), a former student in Brent International School Manila was also athletic and not only excelled in track and field, but also participated and competed internationally in multiple sports such as cross country, basketball, soccer, and volleyball. Up to this day, she still holds the grade school and high school track records in Brent International School Manila.

In later years, Klarrizze pursued basketball and received a full athletic scholarship in the Ateneo De Manila University. Klarrizze was part of the UAAP Women's Basketball Lady Eagles Team for four seasons (2012–2016). Muros-Posadas' daughter obtained her bachelor's degree in Psychology and is now a preschool teacher. Eleven years after the birth of Elma's first child, she gave birth to her son, George Michael Jr. (b. 2003) who is now also a student in Brent International School Manila and is active and excels in sports as well. Presently, they are residents of Santa Rosa, Laguna.[1]