EVER since our nation joined the Olympic Games in 1924, we have never been absent. Excluding the 1980 Games (when 65 countries boycotted the hostilities) in Moscow, Russia, we have attended 20 Summer Olympic Games.
I’ve been to one — with Jasmin in 2008 — and it’s an experience that will forever be entrenched in my mind’s memory drive. I hope — like many sports fanatics in Cebu — to make the short five-hour trip to Japan when they host in 2020.
Exactly 12 days from today, the “Games of the XXXI Olympiad” will kick off in Rio de Janeiro. This will be the 21st time that the Philippines will be joining the Summer Games. (We also participated in four Winter Olympics.)
From August 5 to 21, our planet’s focus will be on Brazil. Only 28 sports are offered but 306 events are lined-up for competition in the 207-nation every-four-years tournament.
Of the over 10,000 athletes that will join, our country will send a small delegation of 12 athletes. Why so few? Imagine only a dozen entries from a country boasting a population of over 100 million?
Good question.
Bad answer: We have not improved while the others have. This is as simple a reply as one can get.
Take boxing. In the sport where we have the best chance, we’re only sending two: Rogen Ladon (light flyweight) and Charly Suarez. In taekwondo (which is making its Olympic comeback after eight years), we have one entry: Kirstie Alora.
So, if we speak of “what are our chances of getting an Olympic medal?” I’ll have to say… probably slim.
Mary Joy Tabal is Cebu’s joy and pride and we are happy that she is flying to Rio to join the marathon runners but, realistically, when her best time is two hours and 43 minutes while the others post 2:20+ times, the chances of Joy getting a medal are quite slim.
If we look back at our Olympic history, the elusive color that we’ve never achieved is that top prize: gold. We’ve been close. Remember the Atlanta Olympics when the Bago City-native reached the finals and we all watched from our TV sets? After winning his first four elimination rounds, he faced the Bulgarian (Daniel Petrov) only to lose 19-6. That was Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco and that was the closest we ever got to winning gold.
In our 92-year Olympic history, we have won only nine medals: Two silver (Anthony Villanueva also won second in Tokyo in 1964) and seven bronze.
Of our nine Olympic medals, we have harvested those priceless metals from only three sports: boxing (five medals), athletics (two) and swimming (two).
In the last four Games (Sydney, Athens, Beijing and London), we are zero for zero. Our last medal was Onyok’s silver in 1996.
As I said, we’ve gotten weaker while others have turned stronger. And while the Olympic motto reads “Citius.. Altius.. Fortius” (which means Faster, Higher, Stronger), I think we can say the opposite for our beloved ‘Pinas.
A good comparison would be Singapore. This nation of only six million has won three medals in the last two Olympic games. Like us, Singapore has never tasted gold — but at least they’ve progressed.
I say... If only Manny Pacquiao joined Rio! (Ha-ha. Yes, he could have because pro boxers are now eligible to join.)
As little a chance as we have of winning a medal in Brazil next week, our best chance might come four years from now in Japan.
The 2020 organizers are considering proposals from eight events: Squash, Baseball and softball, karate, roller sports, sport climbing, surfing, wushu and bowling.
Take note of the last two sports.
Arianne Cerdeña won gold in the 1988 Seoul Olympics — but bowling was a demonstration sport then.
Willy Wang of the Philippines won gold in the 2008 Beijing Olympics — but wushu was, like bowling, a demonstration sport.
But this might change in 2020.
My conclusion? Let’s enjoy the U.S. win the basketball gold in Rio. Let’s applaud Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps as they exit the world stage after Brazil. And let’s wait for our medal in Japan.
(john@pages.ph)