LYDIA DE VEGA REGRETS NOT BEING TAPPED TO TRAIN RP ATHLETES
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 30 Dec 2010
Lydia de Vega.
Asia?s multi-titled sprint queen Lydia de Vega says she regrets the fact that she has not been tapped to help train Filipino athletes while her talent has been recognized and put to good use in a foreign country ? Singapore.
During a wide ranging interview with the Inquirer on sports and her career at the wake of her father, 83 year old Tatang de Vega in Mecauyan, Bulacan, de Vega said ?many people have asked me why.?
De Vega emphasized ?I am a product of the country, I love the Philippines, I gave honor to my country but how come I am not working here and passing on whatever I learned from my father Tatang and from what I learned in various coaches and seminars? referring to the time when she was part of the elite Gintong Alay program headed by Mike Keon.
Lydia said it was sad to know that she is now ?giving her knowledge to athletes in another country? although she conceded that despite ?many circumstances and problems it is much better to work in one?s own country because then you could help. Its not just being committed as a coach but being committed one hundred percent.?
De Vega said that after her stint as a back-to-back 100 meter gold medalist in the Asian Games and other international meets along with other great track and field stars such as Isidro del Prado and Elma Muros among others, there have been no real successors.
The sprint queen said ?we are hungry to see new champions who win medals in the Asian Games, the Southeast Asian Games and other competitions. Sometimes I ask the question, what has happened to us??
She hinted that ?maybe we have to change some things so we can discover some talented athletes once again.?
De Vega noted that we have a wealth of talents in various sports disciplines and ?maybe we need to change some of our programs, improve facilities and have more competitions in the country. We need to have a recruitment program for young, upcoming and talented athletes. We have to start from the base of the primary schools and offer different sports all year round.?
She said the different National Sports Associations must not wait to find out from where the talent will come which she De Vega said ?is very sad.?
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