CEBUANA skateboarding star Margielyn Didal has her eyes set on competing in the Paris Olympics in 2024 after she recovers from the injured ankle that she suffered in the Tokyo Olympics.
Now back in Manila and serving her quarantine period before she makes her way back home to Cebu, the 22-year-old spoke to sportswriters in a roundtable session, where she and coach Dani Bautista spoke of her immediate plans.
“The Olympics in Paris is the next goal, but now we’re focused on making sure Margie recovers and gets to compete at all the upcoming qualifying events,” said Bautista.
Didal shared that she already injured her ankle during training and she tweaked it more during her stint in the women’s street skateboarding event of the Tokyo Olympics, which greatly hampered her routine. In spite of that, she still managed to steal the show with her glowing personality and cheerful attitude throughout the competition. She was also seen cheering on many of her competitors, including eventual silver medalist Rayssa Leal.
“As a skater, you go into a competition with the attitude that you cheer each other on and wish everyone success,” Didal said.
Even though Didal did not get to bring home a medal, her performance undoubtedly helped raise the profile of skateboarding in the Philippines, and she hopes this would pave the way for more support from both the government and the private sector.
Didal has previously batted for more skateparks in the country, which would be instrumental in helping more people get into the sport and hopefully discover more talented skateboarders.
“There is a lot of talent here in the Philippines, and we hope this will be the start of even better results, with younger people on the podiums of major competitions in the near future,” added Bautista.
Before the session ended, Didal imparted some inspiring words to young Filipino athletes everywhere.
“Nothing is impossible,” Didal said. “Dream big, because I never dreamed I would be in the Olympics and yet here I am. As long as you are having fun doing your sport, just keep going.” (JNP)