Sports under Marcos Year 2: More help needed

Even President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. once admitted to be 'embarrassed' of the insufficient financial backing Filipino athletes receive from the government, yet the Philippines' sporting bets continue to deliver

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine sports has enjoyed a steady rise over the past years.

The number of Filipino participants in the Paris Games is enough proof to that notion, with the Philippines sending 22 athletes for its biggest Olympic delegation since 1992.

And hopes of exceeding or matching the Philippines’ historic four-medal haul in the previous Tokyo Games, which included a breakthrough gold, two silvers, and one bronze, is no longer a lofty goal as the likes of pole vaulter EJ Obiena, gymnast Carlos Yulo, and boxers Nesthy Petecio, Carlo Paalam, and Eumir Marcial provide promising chances.

But the lack of support for Filipino athletes remain.

Even President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. admitted to be “embarrassed” of the insufficient financial backing Filipino athletes receive from the government that he doubled the cash incentives for medalists in the 2023 Southeast Asian Games and ASEAN Para Games.

“I am always a little embarrassed when I see that we are not supporting our athletes and our coaches and our trainers and all the support groups, even the families,” said Marcos.

“[C]onsidering the honor and the pride that you bring to the Philippines, it seems that it is not commensurate for the great service that you do to our country and to our people.”

“We need to repay the sacrifice and the honor that you gave our beloved Philippines,” Marcos added in Filipino. “Rest assured that this administration will do everything to support and bring out the athletes’ talent and skills.”

Medal galore

As usual, though, Filipino athletes continue to pull through and deliver – no matter the circumstances.

The SEA Games in Phnom Pehn, Cambodia, saw the Philippines net its biggest overseas gold-medal haul in the biennial showpiece in nearly four decades as it won 58, its most since capturing 59 in the 1987 edition.

In total, the Philippines bagged 260 medals, including 85 silvers and 117 bronzes, to finish fifth overall.

Yulo emerged as the Philippines’ best performing athlete for the third straight SEA Games, churning out two golds and two silvers despite a medal limit imposed by host Cambodia in gymnastics.

Also rising to the occasion, Gilas Pilipinas regained SEA Games supremacy after overcoming a souped-up Cambodian squad bolstered by five naturalized players from the United States in the final.

Para athletes were phenomenal as well.

The Philippines produced its best campaign in ASEAN Para Games history by capturing 34 golds on top of 33 silvers and 50 bronzes for a total of 117 medals.

Para chess standout Darry Bernardo starred for the Philippines with six golds, while para swimmer Angel Otom made a splash, claiming four golds.

Focus on grassroots

Respectable results in the international scene will not be possible without a consistent grassroots program.

Under Marcos’ administration, Palarong Pambansa made its comeback in 2023 after being shelved for four years due to the coronavirus pandemic, with Marikina City serving as host.

Marcos underscored the importance of nurturing the Philippines’ future sports heroes.

“I assure you that this government remains steadfast in developing the prowess of our young athletes and in championing their wellbeing. This administration believes in a transformative power of sports, not only in improving one’s strength and agility, but also in building up character and discipline,” Marcos said.

“These kinds of events, the Palarong Pambansa, the Palarong Panlalawigan, our regional meets, these are where we find our future champions.”

“With consistent and diligent effort, I am confident that they will eventually bring glory to our nation, not only in the field of sports, but also in other endeavors that they will choose to pursue.”

The 2024 Palarong Pambansa hosted by Cebu City then saw the debut of student-athletes from the National Academy of Sports (NAS), which opened classes in 2021 after being signed into law by former President Rodrigo Duterte in 2020.

As NAS was established during the pandemic, it held only virtual classes starting September 2021. Construction of the campus, too, got delayed and physical classes started only in January 2024.

Fielding 47 student-athletes, the NAS – which is located in New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac, and overseen by the Department of Education and Philippine Sports Commission – nailed one gold, five silvers, and two bronzes for a total of eight medals in the Palaro.

With hardly any surprise, National Capital Region maintained its Palarong Pambansa dominance by clinching its 17th straight overall championship on the back of a 98-gold, 66-silver, 74-bronze haul.

“This event is more than just an inter-school, an inter-regional competition. It is also a platform where we discover, where we develop and hone future professional athletes, Olympians, and servant leaders,” said Marcos.

Marcoses and World Cups

Perhaps the biggest sporting challenge of Marcos’ second year in office was the Philippines’ co-hosting of the FIBA World Cup with Japan and Indonesia.

Coincidentally, it marked the first time the country hosted the global hoops showdown since 1978, when his father and late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was also the president.

The price of hosting was originally pegged at P800 million by the government, but reportedly ballooned to over P1 billion. Most of it was expectedly spent on logistics and operational cost, with Marcos also creating an inter-agency task force for the monumental event.

“The successful organization and hosting of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 requires the involvement, coordination, and support of all concerned government agencies, local government units (LGUs), and the private sector,” the administrative order said. 

Marcos tasked agencies such as the Foreign Affairs, Internal and Local Government, Public Works and Highways, Transportation,  Health,  and Tourism departments, Customs and and Immigration bureaus, Philippine National Police, and the Metro Manila Development Authority, with the duty of “streamlining, integrating, harmonizing, and coordinating” all government efforts for the hosting. 

The Philippines served home to 16 of the 32 qualified squads in the group stages from August to September 2023, including powerhouses USA and Serbia, with the last teams standing from Japan and Indonesia also converging in Manila to play the final phase.

Germany, led by tournament MVP Dennis Schroeder, lifted the Naismith Trophy after an enthralling run that saw it survive Latvia in the quarterfinals, stun the USA in the semifinals, and edge Serbia in the finale for its first-ever World Cup crown.

The USA missed the podium for the second straight edition after bowing to Canada in the bronze-medal game – a loss that forced the Americans to bring out the big guns as they tapped NBA superstars LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant for their title-retention bid in the Paris Olympics.

Gilas Pilipinas, meanwhile, delivered a performance to remember at home by beating China for its first World Cup win since 2014.

In danger of becoming the first World Cup host to go winless since Colombia failed to notch a victory in 1982, the Philippines rode on the hot hands of NBA player Jordan Clarkson as it ended a nine-game skid in the World Cup.

While the World Cup satisfied Filipino fans’ hoop passion, with NBA stars Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, and Anthony Edwards all representing their countries, and basketball greats Dirk Nowitzki, Carmelo Anthony, and Luis Scola all coming to the Philippines as ambassadors, there were quite a few hitches.

The low fan turnout in some games due to the high ticket cost at the Araneta Coliseum and Mall of Asia Arena stood out, prompting FIBA to admit “unsuccessful” ticket pricing.

Still, Filipinos made sure to support its home team as a FIBA record 38,115 – including Marcos – watched Gilas Pilipinas’ opener against Dominican Republic at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan.

But in the end, the hosting delivered gains in the economic front as the hosting showcase gave “the country a much-needed infusion following three years of constrained business activities during the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to several tycoons, including Manny V. Pangilinan and Ramon S. Ang, who put in major stakes in the global basketball event.

What’s next?

All eyes are now on Filipino athletes who will compete in Paris as the Philippines celebrates its 100th year of Olympic participation since it debuted in 1924 in the same French capital.

Obiena, Yulo, Petecio, Paalam, Marcial, golfer Bianca Pagdanganan, judoka Kiyomi Watanabe, weightlifter Elreen Ando, and swimmer Kayla Sanchez, formerly of Canada, return for their second Olympic stints, while the rest of the Philippine delegation see action in the Games for the first time.

This group of Filipino athletes bear the weight of immense pressure and expectation, especially after weightlifting star Hidilyn Diaz ended the Philippines’ long search for an Olympic gold when she reigned supreme in the Tokyo Games in 2021.

Diaz fueled the Philippines’ biggest medal haul in Olympic history as Petecio and Paalam each contributed a silver and Marcial added a bronze.

But with Diaz missing the Olympics after four consecutive appearances, the task of building on the Philippines’ gains in Tokyo now falls on the shoulders of its Olympic holdovers and first-timers.

While the PSC, the government’s sporting arm, funded the campaign, the Filipino bets also got a boost from the private sector, like the Philippine Olympic Committee and Cignal TV organizing a monthlong training camp for the first time in Metz, France to help the athletes’ Paris 2024 buildup.

“As you step on to the global stage, hold our flag high and show the world what a Filipino is made of,” said Marcos when he sent off Team Philippines on June 21. “We believe in you, we are proud of you, and we will be with you every step of this remarkable journey.”

With the promised support, from moral to financial, hopefully it won’t be another waiting game for some of the country’s best. – Rappler.com