SEA Games 2025: Netflix’s Physical: Asia star Robyn Brown proud to fly Philippine flag

BANGKOK – South Korean CrossFitter Amotti may be the biggest star of Netflix’s Physical: Asia show but here in Bangkok, there is another cast member who is making an impact at the SEA Games.

On Dec 15, Filipina hurdler Robyn Brown clinched a silver in the 400m hurdles with a time of 57.50 seconds, before adding a bronze in the women’s 4x400m relay a day later.

The 31-year-old was part of the Philippines team who competed in Physical: Asia alongside boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, rugby player Justin Coveney, mixed martial arts fighter Mark Mugen, powerlifter Ray Querubin and CrossFit athlete Lara Liwanag.

A spin-off of the hit South Korean series Physical: 100, the reality show featured 48 athletes from eight countries – Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Mongolia, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand and Turkey – competing in team-based challenges.

The Filipinos were the third team to be eliminated in the series.

Brown told The Straits Times that the experience on the Netflix show has made her a better athlete.

“It was definitely challenging,” she said, when asked about her time on the show.

“I am not like a physical fighter at all. In track and field, you stay in your own lane. So it definitely was a different aspect of sport, which I absolutely love.

“It definitely challenged me mentally and physically and I couldn’t have asked for more. It was incredible.

“I’m kind of a nobody in the track and field world. It took me a while to build my rapport, but stepping onto the global stage on Physical: Asia definitely showed me and my teammates a lot of our strengths, and we’re just so happy that we’ve received so much love from everyone.”

Pacquiao, 47, was clearly a hit among the athletes on the show and Brown also relished spending time with her teammate, who is regarded as one of the greatest professional boxers of all time.

“I grew up watching him on TV... so it was surreal to finally actually see him in person and him just like bringing us (together) as a team has been incredible,” said Brown, who added that the boxer helped her improve her mental strength.

“Just talking to him and getting his mental background and the aspects of what fuels him and what drives him to win, continue forward and to fight for the spirit of the Philippines definitely inspired all of us.”

While Brown played down her role on Physical: Asia, she was already a known figure in the Philippines’ sports scene before the show.

In 2023, she made history when she won the women’s 400m hurdles gold at the Asian Athletics Championships in Bangkok to become the first Filipina to win a title at the continental competition in 14 years.

Brown’s mother Susana Crisostomo is from the Philippines and works as a nurse, while her father, Kurtis Brown, is American.

Born and raised in California, she said that her mother has always helped the family to stay connected to their Filipino roots, including cooking Filipino food at home.

She added: “Even when I look back at my school projects about who I am, I definitely have always identified myself as a Filipino, just because... my mum has always kept the Filipino spirit in our house.

“So if you look at my school papers and you ask me what I am, I’m always saying I’m Filipina.”

Brown will be spending her Christmas break in the Philippines after the Games, before returning to the United States, where she trains and also coaches sprints and hurdles at the California State University.

Then, preparation will start for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games and perhaps, a return to reality TV is on the cards.

Brown said: “Oh my gosh, if they have a Season 2 (of Physical: Asia), bring us on. Please.

“Everyone there felt like family. We’re taking it season by season though.

“Asian Games is in September next year, so that’s probably what we’re going to start building on. But for now, I am going to take a little break.”