INSTEAD of one dozen, we have 13. Thanks to the last-minute exit of an Iranian judoka, our original 12-athlete team increased by one with the entry of Kodo Nakano, a Filipino-Japanese who’ll be competing in the judoka men’s 81-kg. category. Let’s hope for a Lucky 13 for Team PHI!
I saw glimpses of yesterday’s Opening on TV5 and, like any once-every-48-months event, it was spectacular. Fireworks brightened the Brazilian evening. The color green — symbolic of host Brazil, its great Amazon forest, and environmental protection — was ever present. And that looming “Christ The Redeemer,” one of the most symbolic images on this planet, stood tall and almighty above Rio de Janeiro.
With our Philippine contingent, it’s interesting that during the Parade of Nationas we marched under the name “Filipinas.” We were the 75th contingent and entered after Fiji and before Finland. Even team “USA,” led by Michael Phelps and traditionally one of the last to enter, was the 70th group — five places before us. They carried “Estados Unidos da America.”
Opting to use Brazil’s native Portuguese, the sequence must have been challenging for the 207 teams. The only two exceptions? Greece, where the first Games were held, always marches first; and the hosts always march last.
Team PHI was also able to do something unique: We switched flag-bearers. Ian Lariba carried our flag entering the Maracaña Stadium but later turned it over to taekwondo jin Kirstie Elaine Alora. The reason? Lariba is scheduled to compete at 9 a.m. today and did not want to overtire her arms for her sport of table tennis.
“I have no problems with the switch,” Lariba said in an interview with Rappler. “They only have my best interests. And besides, it’s a win-win situation for me and Elaine.”
As my cable operator is SkyCable and not Cignal — and the latter has the exclusive Olympic rights — I opted not to watch the full presentation. I hope to see it soon on HD format, excited to watch Gisele Bundchen and to listen to a favorite tune, “The Girl from Ipanema.”
With the lighting of the torch, nothing beats Barcelona, when the paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo unleashed an arrow that lighted the Olympic cauldron. This time in Rio, it was subdued. What I did like — being a tennis fanatic — was seeing Guga Kuerten emerge to carry the Olympic torch.
The script called for Pele, the greatest of Brazilian sportsmen who was named “Athlete of the Century” by the IOC, to light the flame but the 75-year-old was not physically well. Too bad. Like Muhammad Ali in 1996, it would have been perfect see Pele twenty years later light the flame.
IRONMAN. As big as the Olympics is to world sports, nothing is bigger than the Ironman 70.3 race to Cebu. Now on its fifth season here, the swim-bike-run event has grown bigger with 3,000 athletes joining.
I registered last Friday at the Shangri-La (Jacs Jacalan will swim, Dr. Ron Eullaran will bike and I’ll run) and the entire resort was jampacked. Majority of the participants were non-Cebuano and many sported no-belly, lean and dark-skinned (from all the outdoor training) figures.
The IronGirls last Friday at 5 p.m. was new. It featured an all-women 5K fun run where many sported skirts and glamor-filled attire. Yesterday morning was the IronKids. Today is the main event.
Speaking of sports tourism, the brand “Cebu” has gotten a very positive image, thanks to Sunrise Events, led by Fred Uytengsu, Jr. (who must be doubly-happy to bring the sport to his native Cebu) and to the Iron-woman behind this weekend, Princess Galura.
IM 70.3 is great for Cebu. It’s terrific for all the participants who’ve transformed their lives into active lifestyles. It’s welcome business for Shangri-La and the myriad of resorts that reside in Mactan.
As to the to the rest of the public? Events like these don’t happen each week. We hope for patience in traffic and an early, early departure for those headed to the airport.
Let’s pray for a safe and successful race for all.
(john@pages.ph)