NATIONAL para archer Agustina Bantiloc nearly jumped out of her wheelchair with joy after learning that she had qualified for the Paris Paralympic Games set to start in late August.
“Thank you, Lord! Ito na ‘yung sagot sa prayer namin,” recalled Bantiloc of her reaction after she was informed by national para archery coach John Honguitan of the good news early in the morning while she was at home in Baguio City two weeks ago.
“Talagang masaya ako kasi sino ba naman ang hindi gustong maglaro sa Paralympics,” added the archer in last Friday’s national teams send-off graced by President Marcos Jr. at the Ayuntamiento de Manila in Intramuros.
A native of Tanudan, Kalinga like Olympic-bound boxer Hergie Bacyadan, Bantiloc earned a bipartite invitation to the Paris Paralympic Games by meeting the minimum qualifying standard of 652 when she finished 11th in the women’s individual compound event in last year’s 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China.
Wheelchair-bound after suffering a debilitating fracture to her pelvic bone when she was just six years old, Bantiloc is excited as she becomes the first national para archer to compete in the quadrennial meet for physically-challenged athletes.
“Siyempre may pressure kasi ako ‘yung first para archer (from the Philippines) na makakapaglaro sa Olympics, pero kagaya ng sino mang atleta gusto ko ring manalo,” said Bantiloc, who made a successful transition from being a former national para powerlifter.
Competing in the women’s 51kg category, Bantiloc won a silver medal in her Asean Para Games debut in Hanoi, Vietnam in 2003.
She was introduced to the sport in 2011 by archery coach Arthur Tampua and proved she had a knack for the sport that earned her a spot with the national para archery team.
“Hindi naging masyadong mahirap given my background as a power lifter and my upper body strength,” noted Bantiloc, who teamed up with Marcel Burgos to bag a bronze medal in the mixed team event in the 2022 Asean Para Games in Surakarta, Indonesia.
Aware that competing in the Paralympic Games in the glitzy French capital would be on a different level, she remained undaunted, saying: “Gagawin ko ang best ko kahit na matindi ang laban at magagaling silang lahat.
“Hindi ko sasayangin ang pagkakataon na ibinigay ng Diyos sa akin.”
