Politician, athlete gun for POC leadership

The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) presidential election is a match between a longtime public servant and a former athlete who are both determined to sustain the momentum gained during the country’s successful participation in the past two editions of the Summer Games.

Incumbent POC president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino of cycling will be shooting for a fresh term against POC auditor Joaquin “Chito” Loyzaga in the POC polls that will be held on Friday afternoon at the East Ocean Palace Restaurant.

Tolentino is a seasoned politician and a very hands-on sports leader.

The Tagaytay City mayor became the president of the POC in 2019 when he beat Philip Ella Juico of athletics in a dramatic, tension-filled election that was held under the cloud of the country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

He served for two years to finish the unexpired term of Victorico Vargas of boxing.

Then, he ran for the POC presidency anew and beat Clint Aranas of archery to gain a full term that gave him a chance to instill his strong, hands-on brand of leadership that greatly boosted the morale of athletes, coaches and other stakeholders.

He was at the helm of the local Olympic movement when the country won its first gold medal in the Olympics courtesy of weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz in Tokyo in 2021. Three years later, he rallied the Filipino athletes anew that led to a double gold medal performance of gymnast Carlos Yulo in the Paris Olympics last August.

If ever he gets elected anew and finishes his term until 2028, Tolentino will go down as the third longest-serving POC chief behind former Congressman Jose “Peping” Cojuangco and former Senator Antonio de las Alas, whose term as president lasted for 13 and 12 years, respectively.

“It will be much tougher this time as the Los Angeles 2028 beckons, but rest assured, we will be more committed and active to our task, all for Philippine sports,” said Tolentino, who is said to be favored after clinching the support of majority of the national sports association (NSA) leaders, including the bloc that is being supported by industrialist Manny Pangilinan.

But Loyzaga is no pushover either.

The 66-year-old eldest son of the late Carlos Loyzaga, the greatest Filipino basketball player ever, is armed with stellar credentials in sports administration after serving as Philippine Sports Commission commissioner and executive director, NSA president and POC executive board member.

More than that, he is a former athlete who won a silver medal in the men’s basketball event of the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing while playing professionally for the country’s most popular team — Barangay Ginebra.

Sideliners believe that Loyzaga is coming in as the underdog due to Tolentino’s impressive performance in his five years in office that led to memorable performances in the Olympics, Asian Games and Southeast Asian Games.

But Loyzaga is still capable of pulling off a surprise for being close to Malacañang with his wife serving as the secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources while having the brother of the incumbent PSC chairman, Robert Bachmann of squash, running with him as second vice president.

“As the sports community continues to grow and evolve, the need for a cohesive and forward-thinking POC has never been more crucial,” Loyzaga said.

“Our goal is to build an organization that empowers our athletes, supports our coaches, and collaborates openly with stakeholders to achieve excellence.”

If ever he gets elected, Loyzaga will be the fourth former national athlete to occupy the top POC post after cager Ambrosio Padilla from 1970 to 1975, booter Cristy Ramos from 1997 to 1999, and fencer Celso Dayrit from 1999 to 2004.