I have always maintained that the development of people, athletes and non-athletes alike will depend on their skills and attitude.
I also pointed out that skills can be learned through constant training and repetition, while attitude is something that only an individual can decide on. Combine these two and it will result to success.
But for athletes, there is a third factor that will be critical in their success and this is the need for funding, whether for training abroad, exposure to international competition and the right equipment, even a foreign coach.
Our Olympic team to the Tokyo Olympiad 2020 emphasizes these needs for an athlete to become world class, even world champions.
Without a doubt, these are the things that once integrated, spell success. There is no secret about this.
Take the case of gold and silver medalist Hidylin Diaz and boxer Nesthy Petecio, respectively, plus those sure of bronze in boxer Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial.
You can also add Caloy Yulo and Yuka Saso to the list.
Isn’t it a fact that these athletes rose above their near poverty situation? When they were younger, they certainly had the right attitude followed by skills development, enabling them to become elite athletes. Plus see how and where they trained and competed, with foreign coaches at that.
I just hope this knowledge can be put into use by our sports officials and coaches, the Philippine Sports Commission, in particular which provides regular funding to national athletes.
I can understand the earlier venting of Marcial that the P43K he was receiving monthly was not enough to cover all his expenses, while Hidilyn’ s Chinese coach alone gets $2,500 per month. It is a good thing that assistance comes from the private sector side, too.
The PSC is doing its share, subject to its funding limitations, and athletes should also understand that, so one option is for the PSC to review its allocation of budget allocation between elite athletes and sports for all programs, and tilt the balance towards the elite athletes’ training.
And on that side, maybe revisit the budget allocation per National Sports Association, focusing on what sport we have the better chances of success.
I know that in the past, the PSC has already identified the primary disciplines that need more funding, including boxing, taekwondo, judo, track and field, archery, and weightlifting, throw in golf, too.
Our Tokyo Olympics team was by far the most prepared, considering the number of medals it will win, as of now, one gold one silver, and possible bronzes all the way to a gold-medal finish.
And they deserve all the recognition and incentives they will be receiving. I never thought I would see this kind of performance in the Olympics in my lifetime. And I am very happy about it.
So for those who are still not satisfied and express their negative thoughts and feelings online, how I wish they just shut up.
