BY FR. SHAY CULLEN
ATHLETES are admired, respected, and imitated by millions of fans and followers around the world and they have influence because of their willpower to succeed, overcome hardship and achieve near-impossible goals. That is the way it is for many great Philippine athletes since almost all of them come from very poor families and have unique sporting abilities. However, they have few sponsors and backers to enable them to train and develop their skills and prowess to reach their maximum ability in their chosen sport.
The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) is the government body that is supposed to provide the best state-of-the-art athletic training facilities, opportunities, and financing for Filipino athletes to train and develop their abilities to compete worldwide and bring home the trophies. However, research done by the Institute of Nationalist Studies shows that the PSC is seriously failing Filipino athletes. Despite the problems and lack of funding and support for the athletes, many Filipinos have succeeded. Hidilyn Diaz became the first Filipino ever to win a gold medal for the Philippines in 2021 at the Tokyo Olympics.
However, the PSC is in a dark shadow over allegations of corruption. There is no Philippine national sports training center to enable the athletes to train and grow. Each has to find their own way to compete in international competitions and rely on their own abilities and the kindness of friends, with little or no encouragement, affirmation, and with minimum support of the government, if any at all. These athletes raise funds themselves, like Michael Martinez, a greatly skilled Filipino figure skater and multiple trophy winner. He was hoping to join the Winter Olympics this year and had to have a GoFundMe page and a G-cash account for donations.
According to a research report by the Institute of Nationalist Studies in August 2021, Olympic boxing qualifier, Irish Magno, was so neglected and underfunded that she could not even send a few thousand pesos to her poor hungry family in the province. The Institute reported that the para-athletes, Edwin Villanueva and Adrian Asul, members of the Philippine Paralympic swimming team, revealed that they were not given government financial allowance since 2019 and had to make do with poor living conditions, gritty food, and uncomfortable accommodation during their training. No love, care, support, or high-powered vitamin or protein diet for them.
The Institute report went on to say that Alex Eala, a highly qualified Filipino tennis player, denied that the PSC had given her three million pesos for training and support. She announced that she never got a single centavo for travel to the Grand Slam or any support. Where did the so-called three million pesos go, who got it? That indicates why few Filipinos if any, make it to the international tennis grand slams.
Hidilyn Diaz, weightlifter, the first Filipino ever to win a gold medal at the Olympics, had great difficulty getting funding for her bid. When she went public requesting support, it was deemed critical of the President and she was viciously vilified online by his supporters. Her determination and courage kept her going all the way to Tokyo where she triumphed and brought honor to the Philippines, winning Gold, no great thanks to the PSC. Other nations allocate hundreds of millions of dollars to train their athletes. (To be continued)/PN
