As the Paris Olympics comes to a close, the Filipinos will be marching back to the country beaming with pride after posting their most successful participation ever with two gold and two bronze medals.
Of course, the star of the show was Carlos Yulo.
The diminutive gymnast from the poor district of Leveriza in Manila stood tall against the giants of gymnastics when he ruled the floor exercise and vault events.
Although the victory came at a price as his mother and girlfriend got entangled in an ugly social media catfight, the fact remains that with his double gold, Yulo formally achieved what other Filipino athletes failed to do in their 100 years of participation in the Summer Games.
But before Yulo, there was Hidilyn Diaz.
Diaz started it all when she won the country’s first ever gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. Her feat didn’t only put the country on the world sporting map, but also prompted other young athletes to work hard and persevere so that they would also achieve international glory.
But achieving three Olympic gold medals in a span of just four years is one thing, grooming the national athletes to sustain the glory in future editions of the Summer Games is another.
Now, the question is: How can we keep our Olympic flame alive?
First, we need to boost our national grassroots program.
Remember that the stars of Team Philippines will be past their 30s when the Los Angeles Games come around. Nesthy Petecio will be 36, Aira Villegas and Hergie Bacyadan will be 33, and Ernest John Obiena and Eumir Marcial will be 32.
With the clock ticking on the stars of the present, there’s a need for us to start scouting so that we can establish a solid pipeline of talents capable of carrying the torch in the Olympics to come.
The perfect model for this strategy is the Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas. Knowing that Diaz is reaching the twilight of her career, the federation has discovered and developed new talents like Elreen Ando, John Ceniza and Vanessa Sarno to make sure the country will remain relevant in the years to come.
That’s also what the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines did when it fielded promising Filipino-Americans in Levi Ruivivar, Emma Malabuyo and Aleah Finnegan in the Paris event. In Los Angeles, they will have other rising stars in Ivan Cruz, Miguel Besana and, of course, Eldrew Yulo – the younger brother of Carlos Yulo.
There should also be collaboration.
For a national sports program to be realized, the Philippine Sports Commission, the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), and the private sector must be united in the common goal to bring glory to the country.
The Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines is a perfect model as its leadership enjoys a very good relationship with POC chairman Richard “Dickie” Bachmann, POC president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, and the MVP Sports Foundation, which is the biggest benefactor of Philippine sports.
Lastly, for the Olympic glory to be sustained, there should be a serious effort to avoid bickering among top sports officials.
Bachmann and Tolentino — the two highest sports officials in the country — figured in some mudslinging at the height of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou last year. But sanity eventually prevailed and the two officials found a way to unite, leading to the country’s most spectacular performance in the Summer Olympics.
It doesn’t take much for the PSC and the POC to be on the same page. All it takes is an open heart and an open mind with the welfare of the national athletes as their top priority.
Sustaining the glory achieved in Paris will not be easy. Yulo has raised the bar so high that it would be very difficult to match or surpass it.
But it’s not impossible. Sustaining that triumphant feeling in future international events can still be done only if the local sports community, especially the athletes, coaches and officials, will start working now.
The clock is ticking. Preparations for the LA Olympics should be started as soon as the sweet scent of champagne around Yulo formally subsides.