Kayla Richardson is Southeast Asia’s fastest female sprinter

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 18) – Kayla Richardson is the new sprint queen of Southeast Asia.

Richardson won the gold medal in the 31st Southeast Asian Games women’s 100-meter dash after tallying 11.60 seconds in the event’s finals on Wednesday at the My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Singapore’s Shanti Pereira came in close for a silver with a time of 11.62 seconds, while Thailand’s Supanich Poolkerd recorded 11.66 seconds to secure a bronze medal finish.

“I can’t complain. I’m so grateful. It took me a lot to get here," said Richardson.

The Filipino American sprinter finished fifth among 12 runners in the preliminary heats with 12.02 seconds.

Richardson clinched her second medal in the Vietnam SEA Games after grabbing the bronze in the women’s 200-meters.

The Philippine athletics team also clinched two bronze medals on Wednesday.

Evalyn Palabrica finished third in the women's javelin throw after tallying 49.07 meters.

Hometown bet Hoang Lo Thi recorded a new SEA Games record throw of 56.37 meters to win the gold medal, while Thailand's Jariya Wichaidit bagged the silver medal with a throw of 55.65 meters.

The quartet of Eloisa Luzon, Bernalyn Bejoy, Maureen Schrijvers, and Robyn Brown also placed third in the women's 4x400-meter relay with a time of three minutes and 43.26 seconds.

The host country won gold, clocking in three minutes and 37.99 seconds, while Thailand took home the silver medal with three minutes and 42.90 seconds.

The Philippine athletics team will seek to score more medals in the marathon and 20-kilometer walk events on Thursday.