Limpag: Region 7: the first among losers

IT WAS elating monitoring the progress of Region 7 in the medal tally as the Palarong Pambansa went on in Vigan. Cviraa, thanks to chess on the first day, was among the early leaders before dropping mid-way and recovering and making the top 5, thanks to archery. Eventually, Cviraa achieved its target and finished at No. 4, five rungs higher than last year.

It’s a cause for celebration, of course, but Cebu City Councilor Joy Young, who stayed with the delegation in Ilocos, has a different take. The councilor was among the VIP guests during the awarding but felt he was the odd man out since there were only trophies for the top three. In a way, Cviraa’s fourth place finish merely meant Region 7 was the first among losers.

Make no mistake, that doesn’t mean Councilor Young doesn’t appreciate the hard work of the delegation. As a hands-on official, he saw how everyone in the delegation worked hard for this. However, I agree with him and I like his take because now that Cviraa has returned to where it used to be—No. 4—it might get complacent.

This reminds me of my usual reaction in previous Palaros. When asked for a target, DepEd 7 would usually safely say they’d go for No. 4. Why 4? Why not aim for 1 and if they fall short, finish at No. 2?

Aiming for No. 1 means you look at where the No. 1 is strong and try to match them. Swimming and athletics are always a rich source of medals and we haven’t had great runners or sprinters for a time. Marian C. Baring, who covered the Palaro for years, said the other day that she considers herself lucky, having been able to witness the time of the Echavez sisters, who dominated the pool, and that of Daniel Noval, Dharl Pitogo, Lindley Fran Navaja, who dominated track and field.

You could say swimming’s decline coincided with the political intramurals of the sport but that’s just pointing out an excuse. Why our track and field athletes are no longer as dominant as before, I really don’t know but here is where the the “First among losers” should direct DepEd; to boost its athletic program.

How? Simple, think out of the box. In Davao, Airnel Talatala Abarra of Ateneo de Davao regularly hold track meets, and that’s something that could be adopted here by DepEd Region 7 because we don’t have regular track and field events.

Competitions hone skills and though we’ve had the Novals, Pitogos and the Navajas with only the Cesafi, Milo and City Olympics meets of a decade ago, perhaps the time calls for a new strategy.

Holding track and field meets, let’s say Region-7 wide, not only improves the skills of the athletes but that of the coaches too, and this cascades down to other athletes and coaches who get eliminated in the lower rungs of the step ladder tournament of DepEd. Besides, track and field meets can be done in two days, just like the Blue Knights meet of Davao, it can be done regularly.

That’s just for track and field, one can also do the same for swimming.

There are many things DepEd 7 can do if it wants to get out of its comfort zone and treat No. 4 not as an achievement but as what Councilor Joy Young calls it, being first among losers.

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