PH continues hunt for elusive Olympic gold in Tokyo
Credit to Author: JEREMIAH M. SEVILLA| Date: Thu, 10 Oct 2019 16:16:16 +0000
The hunt for the country’s first-ever Olympic gold medal will continue in the high-tech Japanese capital of Tokyo next year. Save for the boycott of the 1980 Olympics hosted by the Soviet Union, the Philippines has joined the world’s biggest quadrennial sporting event since it debuted in 1924. It is among 42 countries that have never captured a gold.
The Philippine team has come so close to realizing this dream thrice, snaring a silver medal each in Tokyo 1964, Atlanta 1996 and most recently in Rio 2016 where 13 Filipino athletes competed. Filipino boxer Anthony Villanueva won the country’s first silver in 1964 and another when Onyok Velasco punched his way to a silver in 1996. Lady weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz ended the Philippines’ 20-year medal drought in the Olympics by bagging the silver in the 53-kilogram class in 2016.
Hopes of getting the Philippine’s maiden Olympic gold rest on the shoulders of Diaz, who recently notched two bronzes in the 2019 International Weightlifting Federation World Championships in Thailand and is currently in the process of qualifying for next year’s Games. “I’m aiming for that [gold in Tokyo 2020] and, hopefully, I’ll get it. We need to plan for it carefully and have a good mindset,” the 28-year-old weightlifter said in an interview with The Manila Times.
Besides Diaz, fellow 2018 Asian Games gold medalists — lady golfers Yuka Saso, Bianca Pagdanganan and Lois Kaye Go, and skateboarder Margielyn Didal, as well as Filipino boxers — are seen to be prime candidates who will deliver the country’s first Olympic gold.
Add to that list the young pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena, who is also keen on making history for the Philippines. Obiena emerged as the first Philippine representative to Tokyo 2020 after coming through with a gold-winning 5.81-meter jump in the 2019 Salto Con L’asta In Piazza Chiari in Italy early September.
The 23-year-old pole vaulter surpassed the Olympic qualifying standard of 5.80 meters for men’s pole vault. Obiena also shattered his previous national record of 5.76 meters that he set in the 2019 Summer Universiade also in Italy last July. It was a remarkable feat from Obiena, who came back from an anterior cruciate ligament injury in 2017 and a lackluster finish in his Asian Games debut last year.
“It felt really good, amazing and just overall joy. The hardships along the way made it even better. It is a milestone that I have achieved and fought hard to get,” Obiena, who is still overseas for his training, told The Manila Times through an e-mail. “I was lucky to have a well-structured support system that kept me going forward against all odds.”
Prior to the Olympic qualification, the son of Filipino pole vault great Emerson set a new Asian Athletics record at 5.71 meters with a gold-clinching performance in the event’s 23rd edition in Doha, Qatar last April. The defending Asian Athletics champion now has his eyes set on a gold medal in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, and more importantly, in Tokyo 2020.
“My target is the gold. I know I’m still far from it, but I also know I am capable. I would do all that I can to prepare for Tokyo. I just hope I would get help to fully prepare for it,” he said.
Obiena is expected to be joined by more Filipino athletes in next year’s Olympics, which is touted to introduce a lot of innovations. Five sports will debut: skateboarding, karate, baseball/softball, sport climbing and surfing, making the total number of sports represented to a record 33.
“We will have 17 exciting days with a record 33 sports and 339 events. Every day except the opening and closing days, we will have about 20 gold medal events,” said Tokyo 2020 Sports Director Koji Murofushi, according to The Japan Times. “The schedule has a lot of excitement not just in Tokyo, but in venues across Japan,” added the Olympian hammer throw gold medalist.
Twenty-year-old skateboarder Didal, who snagged a gold in the 2018 Asian Games, has started her campaign to qualify for the Olympics, which will run from July 24 to August 9.
Filipino-Japanese Junna Tsukii, who won a bronze medals in both the Asian Games and the 2019 World Karate Federation Serie A in Spain last June, is also seen to become a Philippine representative.
The world-ranked No. 13 softball team Philippine Blu Girls, meanwhile, started their Olympic bid in the Asia-Oceania qualifying tournament late September in China.
Technological advancements
In its first hosting of the Olympics in 1964, Japan introduced the Shinkansen (bullet train) and the first global satellite feed. Next year, athletes and spectators alike will experience more innovations as the Japanese hosts are out to reassert their dominance in technology.
“Tokyo is at the front of innovation and technology. We are hoping to develop and popularize a diverse range of technological innovations,” said Hidetoshi Fujiwasa, Tokyo 2020 executive director of communications and engagement.
“The 2020 Games is an opportunity for Japan, for its capital and for the Japanese business community to amaze the world,” Fujiwasa added. Robots will be used in airports to assist visitors, while a facial recognition system, which will identify people within 0.3 seconds, will be utilized for security to speed up access to venues. The centerpiece is expected to be a high-tech transportation system that will feature driverless cars and artificial intelligence-powered vehicles for transporting sports equipment.
Efforts have also been made to make 2020 an environment- and socio-friendly event. The Tokyo Organizing Committee unveiled the 2020 Games Sustainability Plan, anchored on the concept “Be better, together — for the planet and the people,” last year.
The plan has five main sustainability themes: “Towards Zero Carbon” (climate change), “Zero Wasting” (resource management), “City within Nature” (natural environment and biodiversity), “Celebrating Diversity” (human rights, labor and fair business practices) and “United in Partnership and Equality” (involvement, cooperation and communications).
Renewable energy is to be used to power the venues, athletes’ village and media centers, with the Japanese government installing numerous solar panels. Meanwhile, over 5,000 gold, silver and bronze medals will be produced under the Tokyo 2020 Medal Project, which will use donated metal from used mobile phones and electrical appliances.
Impactful changes are also expected to be made not just for the environment, but also for the society. “The 2020 Games will focus on big changes in society, for example, being more tolerant towards each other regardless of difference in race, religion or physical abilities. We are hoping we will improve the conditions and infrastructure to make it a kinder place for everyone to live,” Fujiwasa said.