A Golden Year
It was a golden year for Philippine sports, made even more special by historic finishes, thrilling triumphs, and heartbreaking setbacks.
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It was a golden year for Philippine sports, made even more special by historic finishes, thrilling triumphs, and heartbreaking setbacks.
The year 2023 will become one of the most successful in Philippine sports.
Unlike 2021, when Hidilyn Diaz delivered the country's first-ever Olympic gold medal, more national athletes shone, proving that Filipinos have what it takes to rise in the international arena.
Leading the country's top sports performers in 2023 was Ernest John Obiena.
The 28-year-old Obiena made his presence felt in historic fashion, completing his journey from a skinny kid from Tondo to the second-best pole vaulter in the world.
He started the season on fire, winning three gold medals against a topnotch field featuring former Olympic medalists, world champions, and European super athletes.
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But his biggest wins came on Asian soil.
Obiena reset the meet record at 5.65 meters to capture the gold medal in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia.
A few months later, he soared through the Chinese sky to register a record-setting 5.90 meters and clinch the crown in the 19th Asian Games.
Before that, he emerged as the latest member of the elite "six-meter club" after clearing 6.0 meters in a tournament in Norway. Right now, only four exclusive club members are still competing actively, with Obiena as the first — and only — Asian.
And Obiena is far from done. The Philippine Olympic Committee and the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association are pinning their hopes on him, knowing he can stand up against the best athletes in the world in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Also delivering were the national men's basketball and women's football teams.
Known as Gilas Pilipinas, the national cagers made history when they bagged the gold medal in the 19th Asian Games after 61 years of futility.
Gilas survived all kinds of adversity — from the unavailability of key players, the resignation of their head coach, the late registration of replacements, and transportation setbacks — to coast to the quarterfinals of the prestigious quadrennial meet.
They clobbered Iran in the knockout match to arrange a semifinal duel against powerhouse China — a team still nursing the wounds of its 75-96 loss to the Filipinos in the FIBA Basketball World Cup.
The Chinese marched to battle with fire in their eyes. They erected a 20-point lead in the first half that shook the jampacked Hangzhou Olympic Centre to its foundation.
But the Filipinos refused to lose.
Gilas Pilipinas patiently chewed the lead one step at a time until, finding itself trailing by just five in the final minute, Justin Brownlee took over and knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to steal the lead, 77-76.
China had a chance to seal the win, but Zhang Zhenlin muffed the potential game-winner, leaving his entire country in tears.
But the sweet scent of victory had yet to die down when the Filipinos awoke to bad news: Brownlee, the hero of their historic triumph, had tested positive for a banned substance.
Although the gold medal remains safe, Brownlee's doping test result put a massive asterisk next to the win. So far, Brownlee is still in the United States awaiting any sanctions from the International Basketball Federation.
A few months before that historic — and controversial — conquest, the Filipinas made their mark in the FIFA Women's World Cup.
Sarina Bolden, a Los Angeles-raised striker, scored a goal in the 23rd minute, while goalkeeper Olivia McDaniels made some key defensive stops to preserve a historic 1-0 victory over host New Zealand in the group stages.
Although the Filipinas failed to land on the medal podium, they still sent a strong message that they could play against world-class competition given the right personnel, the right exposure, and many prayers.
Truly, the year 2023 was one of a kind.
It was a golden year for Philippine sports, made even more special by historic finishes, thrilling triumphs, and heartbreaking setbacks.
But more than that, it offered a golden lesson of fighting through adversity and standing up after every fall.
