Quality over quantity?

Next week, 22 brave Filipino athletes will see action in the Paris Olympics.

According to Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, we are headed for our best performance ever, something that will match — or even surpass — the Filipinos’ finish in Tokyo in 2021 when Hidilyn Diaz plucked the country’ first gold medal.

A quick look at the roster raises hopes.

Ernest John Obiena has evolved into a pole vault powerhouse, rising from a nervous athlete in Tokyo to one of the best in the world behind record-holder Armand Duplantis of Sweden.

Also competing is the older and wiser Carlos Yulo, who will be marking his second stint after a disappointing flop three years ago.

Then there’s the vaunted boxing team.

Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio are determined to turn their silver medals into gold as they head to their second Olympic stint. Tokyo Games bronze medalist Eumir Marcial will also be competing armed with a wealth of experience under his belt after dabbling in the professional ranks.

Overall, the future looks bright and Tolentino had all the reasons to be confident when he reported our chances in the Summer Games.

But, if we’re going to base our chances on the number of qualifiers, are we really performing above expectations? Definitely not.

The fact that the Philippines has only 22 athletes in the Olympics is both alarming and encouraging.

It’s alarming in a sense that this country of 117 million people has only 22 athletes — or 20 if we deduct the wildcard bets in swimming — who made the Olympic grade. At the same time, it’s encouraging because the meager resources of the government and the private sector can be focused on only 22 individuals, giving them handsome chances of raising their level of performance as they prepare for the Summer Games.

But let’s not kid ourselves, having only 22 athletes speaks volumes about the country’s sports program. With only 22 bets, our chances of landing on the medal podium teeters on the brink depending on the amount of luck, hope and prayers — not exact science and data.

Japan, which has a population of 125 million, will be marching to Paris as an Olympic juggernaut with 404 athletes who will see action in 34 sports. Another country that is pretty much the same size as the Philippines is Egypt, which has 111 million people and will be deploying 147 athletes in 23 sports, including fencing where it is expected to dominate and win its first Olympic gold medal.

Compared to other Southeast Asian countries, the Philippines is also struggling.

Indonesia, the biggest country in Southeast Asia with a population of 277 million, will parade 29 athletes in 12 sports, while Thailand, which has a population of 71 million, will deploy 51 athletes in 16 sports.

Even tiny Singapore, which is home to six million citizens, will be represented by 23 athletes in 11 sports — one more than the Philippines.

You see, sports are the microcosm of a society. There must be something wrong if you have a population of more than 117 million but could only send 22 athletes to the biggest and most prestigious sports event in the world.

Sure, we can use the “quality over quantity” argument all we want but the fact remains that we have to send a bigger delegation to raise our chances of winning a medal. For a country of more than 117 million, we should be sending over 100 athletes to the Olympics — not a meager 22.

The Olympics is the ultimate yardstick of how a country’s sports program is faring against the rest of the world. If you can send a bigger delegation to the Olympics, it means that you are doing something right and medals are within reach.

This is now the challenge to Tolentino and other ranking sports officials. As soon as the Paris conclave is over, they have to sit down and plot an honest-to-goodness program that aims to send a bigger delegation to the Los Angeles Games in 2028.

Because if not, the Filipinos will again be standing on the fringes of the Summer Games, leaving their chances of winning a medal to destiny, luck, and, yes, a lot of prayers.