MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines marked 100 years of participation in the Summer Olympics with its all-time best campaign.
Powered by gymnastics ace Carlos Yulo and boxing standouts Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas, the 22-strong Centennial Team ended up with two golds and two bronzes as the Paris Games came to a close on Sunday, August 11.
Yulo allowed the Philippines to win multiple gold medals in a single Olympics for the first time after reigning in the floor exercise and vault of the men’s artistic gymnastics competition.
Living up to his potential after bagging world titles in the same two apparatuses, the 24-year-old Yulo became the Philippines’ first Olympic double gold medalist and the first Filipino to win multiple medals in a single Games edition.
Petecio and Villegas each added a bronze as the Philippines tied Hong Kong for 37th place in the overall medal tally.
It is the highest Olympic finish by the country in exactly six decades, or since it tied for 30th place in the 1964 Tokyo Games, where boxer Anthony Villanueva copped silver for the Philippines’ lone medal.
The Philippines also concluded the Olympics as the best performing Southeast Asian nation for the second straight edition, edging Indonesia and Thailand for the distinction.
Indonesia clinched two golds and one bronze, while Thailand nailed one gold, three silvers, and two bronzes.
Moreover, the Philippines matched its four-medal haul – its biggest in the Olympics – in the 2020 Tokyo Games, where weightlifting heroine Hidilyn Diaz captured a breakthrough gold for the country.
There were a couple of missed chances for additional medals, with pole vaulter EJ Obiena and golfer Bianca Pagdanganan placing fourth in their respective events.
Although they did not make it to the podium, several members of Team Philippines still made history.
Fencer Samantha Catantan and rower Joanie Delgaco became the first females in their sports to represent the country in the Olympics.
Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo, and Levi Jung-Ruivivar, meanwhile, ended a six-decade wait for a Filipina gymnast to compete in the Games. – Rappler.com