Blown chances at the 2010 Asiad
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 06 Jan 2011
The Philippines had not had a decent finish in the Asian Games since ending up in second place in the fourth edition of the quadrennial conclave 58 years ago held in Jakarta. The 130-athlete contingent brought home seven gold medals, 6 silvers and 24 bronzes behind eventual overall winner Japan.
It had a very good opportunity to at least approximate that 1962 gold-medal harvest last year in the 16th staging in Guangzhou, China, but failed.
Thinking about other things than overseeing the 2010 delegation come up with the country?s worthiest showing, the Philippine Olympic Committee decided to leave two teams and an equestrienne, which were given fair chances of ruling their respective events.
The national dragon boat men?s and women?s squads, world champions both, were made to undergo time trials in order to qualify despite their past performances in the world stage, but, nevertheless, were written off from the list for flimsy reason that the members were not in the ?best shape? given the quality of competition (in China).
That was beside implying to media that members of the team and PDBF officials cheated in reporting the results of time trials. This, despite the president himself of the International Dragon Boat Federation, Mike Hasiam attesting that the ?Philippines Dragon Boat team is capable of winning medals at the 2010 Asian Games.?
Hasiam even expressed disappointment over the decision of the POC to leave out the teams.
?The IDBF feels that the POC have not given full consideration to the matter and that if they really thought that there were inconsistencies in the results of the time trials, then they should have consulted the IDBF as the International Federation responsible for Dragon Boat Sport.?
Hasiam added that the POC could have asked the IDBF to adjudicate (on the issue) ?before banning the national dragon boat teams from competing in Guangzhou.?
Leviste 2002 Asian Games silver medalist in show jumping event of equestrian was, likewise, not permitted to join the Guangzhou expedition despite emerging victorious in a pair of pre-Asiad competitions for lack of funds to cover the cost of shipping her horse and a groom to the Games venue.
Officials of the Philippine Dragon Boat Federation appealed the POC decision to no avail. The members of the teams even went to writing Congress, the Senate and Malacanan, all of which turned deaf ears to their plea.
Leviste, who toured Europe and the United States on her own to hone up for the Games volunteered to fund her participation but was, likewise, turned down.
Official results of the dragon boat competitions as gathered by Malaya revealed that at least the women?s team could have won a pair of gold medals and a silver based on the clocking during the time trials held Oct. 11 at the La Mesa Dam.
The Filipina rowers 500-meter straight course in 1:58.380, 2.287 faster than the winning time 2:00.667 registered by eventual gold medalist China. The Filipinas? 0:58.560 clocking submitted in the 250-meter straight course during the time trials also came faster by .76 seconds than the gold medal time 0:59.320, also of the Chinese winners.
Leviste, the lone gold medalist in the 2005 Philippine Southeast Asian Games, on the other hand, topped the World Dressage championships held in Manila only two weeks ago and could have also brought home the gold in this event in the Asian Games.
Add those probable gold medals to the three collected each by boxer Rey Saludar in the flyweight division, bowler Biboy Rivera in singles event and cue artist Dennis Orcollo in billiards singles and the Philippines would have gotten with a total six gold medals.
That total would not have landed the Philippines in the top in the overall medal standing, but that, certainly would been the country's a little less than six decades and 14 staging of the Asiad, the biggest and greatest sporting event in the region.
Such a result will definitely inspire not only the Filipino boatmen and women, but their peers, too, in other sports in this year?s SEA Games in Jakarta where no less than the POC high priests themselves vowed at least a third place finish than the fifth managed by the 2009 delegation.
Members of the national men?s and women?s dragon both teams, although disappointed and dismayed by what happened to them, continue to stay intact and united promising to resume their training soon and vowing to strife further to keep their future in the sport bright in the face of obstacles that threatened to break them apart.
They will be defending their men?s 200-meter title and the mixed crew events in the coming world championships this year in Tampa, Florida. Despite the setback the national oarsmen and oarswomen are hopeful that they can get enough support, financial and otherwise, to guarantee their entry in the world competitions.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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