Chris Newsome is determined to sustain his Meralco success when he competes for Gilas Pilipinas in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament from 2 to 7 July in Riga, Latvia.

After winning his first Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) title with the Bolts a couple of weeks ago, Newsome vows to work hard to help Gilas book a return flight to the Summer Games after a 52-year absence.

Newsome said he is ready to go hard for the Filipinos despite having a very short breather following their grueling run to the PBA throne, where they beat powerhouse San Miguel Beer in six games of their best-of-seven showdown.

“It feels great to get that breakthrough win for Meralco. It all happened so fast. I had one to two days of celebrating with my teammates and then I had to shift my mindset already,” Newsome, the Most Valuable Player of the Finals, said.

“I stayed in the gym and kept my game rhythm going while I’m already in shape, I’m already in (playing) condition and how my mind is. It’s already playoff intensity so definitely, I’m ready for the Olympic qualifier.”

“I’m excited to get to work. We’re gonna give ourselves a chance to try to get to the Olympics for the country.”

Newsome has been getting some measure of success while donning the national colors.

Last year, the former Ateneo de Manila University star helped Gilas bag the gold medals in the 32nd Asian Games in Phnom Penh and the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou.

The Filipino-American guard said he will repay Gilas coach Tim Cone’s faith by playing his heart out to help the Filipinos top Group A against Latvia and Georgia.

Should they go 2-0 in the first round, they will advance to the next round against Brazil, Cameroon and Montenegro.

From there, anything can happen.

“There’s a lot of people who may say that I deserve to be here or not deserve to be here. But regardless, I’m gonna put my best effort out there for the whole country,” Newsome said.

“It’s an honor for me to represent and put on the jersey. I’m gonna give everything that I have every time that I step on the floor, but as far as proving anything, no I’m not. I’m just here to do my duty and my job.”