SEAG Gainers, Losers
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 02 Jan 2012
Six years after crowning itself the Southeast Asian Games overall champion Philippine continued its seemingly unending slump, ending up sixth in the field of 11 nations in the 26th edition of the meet last year, its worst since joining the quadrennial sports conclave in 1977. The some 500-man national delegation sent to Indonesia hopefully to improve on its predecessor?s fifth place finish two years ago in Laos could only manage to bring home 36 gold medals, two short of the 38 harvest in 2005.
That total gold production was five short of the 41 the Filipino athletes? hauled down in Thailand where they, likewise, wound up sixth, actually a duplication of such lowly finish the country suffered in 1989.
Sports leaders were quick in blaming luck of funds as culprit for the debacle, but how come sports where enormous amount of money was poured through private sponsorship like boxing and taekwondo, among others also failed to come up to expectations remained unanswered.
And how come, too, sports both the Philippine Olympic Committee and Philippine Sports Commission refused to help financially like baseball, men?s softball, bridge, fin swimming were able to deliver? The much-maligned baseball team, was already destined not to carry the county?s colors, in fact, and was only able to earn the trip to Jakarta after receiving from the PSC reimbursement of advances made by Philippine Amateur Baseball Association president Hector Navasero for previous international competitions.
The Philippine Blu Boys, of course, were able to defend their SEA Games title only after Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines president Jean Henri Lhuillier shouldered their expenses from plane fare to players allowances, uniforms, jackets and accommodations while in Indonesia.
Gold medalists in bridge (2 golds) , fin swimming and wall climbing (1 gold each) spent for their own to erase doubts told them point-blank by POC and PSC officials that they were incapable of doing honors for the country.
They are Francisco Alquiros, George Soo and Gemma Mariano Tan in bridge, fin swimmer Danielle Faith Torres in fin swimming and wall climber Elaina Kristine Flores.
Alquiros came out as the most be-medaled Filipino athlete by ruling two events ? the men?s buttler doubles in partnership with Soo and the mixed buttler team with Mariano Tan.
Torres, the youngest gold medalist at 16, bagged top honors in the women?s 50-m surface event in fin swimming, while Flores the women?s boulder discipline in wall climbing.
Also doing the country proud were athlete whose sports were re-included in last year?s calendar of events such as Alfie Catalan and John Renee Mier in cycling, Wesley So in chess, Martin Diego Lorenzo in equestrian, bowler Frederick Ong, Nestor Cordova in rowing, men?s basketball, men?s traditional boat race squad and the RP Blu Girls in softball.
Softball, the only sport that swept its two events, cycling, bridge, baseball, fin swimming, chess, equestrian, basketball and bowling and traditional boat race accounted for 16 of the country?s total 36 gold haul, meaning without them, the national contingent could have gone home with mere 20-gold harvest that could have been the leanest for the country.
Losers outnumbered gainers in last year?s Games , with swimming, the most pampered sport in terms of financial support is concerned emerged the biggest flop by returning home with a big flat egg with zero gold from four two years ago.
Athletics? seven-gold winning in 2007, the most by any sport could only manage a pair this time, while boxing, which triumphed five times in Laos only had four in Indonesia.
The Filipino wrestlers, who took the victory podium four times in Laos did twice last year, while judo and golf had none from two each in 2009. Also emerging as losers are tennis, from two to one and karatedo from one to nil.
Karatedo?s loss came about after the POC disenfranchised the previous Philippine Karatedo Federation leadership and as a result disqualified 2009 gold medalist Marna Pabillore as well as that year?s silver and bronze medalists, who are all gold medal prospects.
The Philippines could have actually performed better and even catch Singapore up in fifth place overall had the POC, in another case of political vendetta, likewise, not disenfranchised the Philippine Dragon Boat Federation where the five world champions belonged. Wushu, despite the presence of at least a pair of world champions in its lineup, could only match its two-gold showing in Laos. The same with billiards and snooker, which failed to add to its three-gold winning, also two years ago.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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