TOKYO Olympic gold medalist Hidylin Diaz will be in the Paris Olympic Games after all.
Although she failed to qualify for the quadrennial games after placing 11th in the women’s 59-kilogram class in the International Weightlifting Federation World Cup in Phuket, Thailand early this month, Diaz will be there as member of the IWF Athlete’s Commission in the romantic French capital.
“I will be there for the entire weightlifting event from Aug. 7 to 11 since I am a member of the IWF Executive Board and vice chairman of the IWF Athletes’ Commission,” the celebrated athlete said yesterday during the press conference kicking of the 60th anniversary of Milo Philippines in the country at the Trinoma Mall in Quezon City.
While she did not make it as an athlete in what would have been her fifth straight Olympics appearance, the Zamboanga City pride was proud of those who made it.
This included Elreen Ando of Cebu, who took the country ‘s slot in the weight division at her teammate’s expense after finishing seventh in the Phuket event.
“We pray and wish them all the best, includling Elreen, the same with Vanessa (Sarno), Jose (Ceniza) and Rosegie (Ramos),” said Diaz-Naranjo, although she admitted that rooting for them openly might be difficult given her status at the Games.
“Definitely, I will be rooting for them all in my heart,” she said.
She reiterated that she has not totally given up on the sport that she had spent more than half her lifetime, giving her well-earned fame and fortune, but relished the prospects of taking a vacation and out of the spotlight for a while.
“Definitely, Hidy is far from done. We will have our aspiring weightlifters at our training camp (in Jala-jala, Riza) to look after and some exciting things that are being cooked up ahead,” said her husband-coach, Julius Naranjo, who declined to divulge what these were in the meantime.
Diaz said she is open to competing in next year’s 33rd Thailand Southeast Asian Games that will feature a women’s 55kg class, her former fighting weight, and where she is a two-time SEA Games champion.
