MANILA, Philippines – It was in Tokyo in 2021 when the Philippines had its best-ever showing in the Olympics.
Although superstar weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz will no longer have a shot at a third medal after falling short in the Paris Games qualification, the three other medalists from Tokyo will aim to fill in the shoes left by the greatest Olympian the Philippines has ever produced.
The Tokyo trio – Olympic boxing silver medalists Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam, and bronze winner Eumir Marcial – will be among those leading the 22-athlete Philippine delegation bidding to surpass its record medal output four years ago.
Before the historic Tokyo Games run, the country’s previous best Olympic performance was in the 1932 Los Angeles Games where the Philippines brought home three bronze medals courtesy of Simeon Toribio in athletics (men’s high jump), Jose Villanueva in boxing (men’s bantamweight), and Teofilo Yldefonso in swimming (men’s 200-meter breaststroke).
Every four years, boxing has perennially provided the Philippines its biggest hopes for the elusive Olympic gold.
Petecio, Paalam, and Marcial continue this tradition as they are among the country’s brightest medal prospects in Paris.
They, too, share a number of things in common.
The three are all proud Mindanaoans. Marcial, like Diaz, comes from the Latin City of the South, Zamboanga City. Petecio is from Sta.Cruz, Davao del Sur. Born in Bukidnon, Paalam moved to Cagayan de Oro when he was six years old.
The Tokyo trio will all be humming what could possibly be the final verses of their swan song in the Paris Olympics.
The 28-year-old Marcial moved up to the men’s 80 kilogram after his bronze finish in Tokyo in the men’s 75kg, a division that has been scrapped from this year’s edition.
Marcial is already in the early stages of what is shaping up to be a promising professional boxing career. He is unbeaten since 2020 in the pro ranks after five bouts, three of which did not go the distance.
His last fight was last March 23 when he knocked out Thoedsak Sinam of Thailand at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Marcial has been vacillating between the pro ranks and the amateur ranks the past four years, but the plan had always been to win the gold in Paris before concentrating full-time on his pro career.
“My goal is not just to participate in the Paris Olympics, but to win the gold,” said Marcial in Filipino.
Petecio, meanwhile, knows that time is not on her side.
“I am so blessed. This is very important for me because maybe this is my last Olympics,” Petecio said in Filipino after clinching a Paris Games berth in Busto Arsizio, Italy.
At 32 years old, Petecio has practically accomplished everything there is to accomplish in boxing, bagging a gold and silver in the World Championship, ranking world No. 2 in the women’s 57kg, copping one silver and two bronzes from the Asian Championships, and becoming a two-time Southeast Asian Games gold medalist.
But there is one more thing missing in her medal cabinet that may be within reach in Paris.
“I will not stop until I get the Olympic gold medal” said a determined Petecio.
Like Marcial and Petecio, the 26-year-old Paalam knows it’s important to make the most of his Paris stint as getting to the Olympics a third straight time will not be an easy feat, considering he will be 30 when the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics rolls around.
Already, the wear and tear has been creeping up on Paalam, who had to overcome injuries just to book a ticket to Paris.
He will also be going up in weight at 57kg from 52kg, so it will be interesting to see how Paalam deals with bigger and heavier foes.
Paalam has shown he has adjusted to his new weight class when he won the 2022 Asian Championships and the 2023 SEA Games gold. The challenge now for Paalam is to prove he could do the same in Paris against the best competition in the world.
It is the thought that they could be making their final Olympic stand that fuels the Tokyo trio in their Paris quest.
While others would be happy to just have made it to Paris, the standards have been set higher for Petecio, Paalam, and Marcial. The goal is the gold. There is no other medal in their sights. – Rappler.com
