ALL three Paralympians and the swimming coach who took part in the last Tokyo Paralympics believe they could have done better had they been given the chance to train longer and prepare for their respective events.
“I believe that majority of our rivals in Tokyo had longer bubble training than we had. Kung mas matagal ang naging training namin, we might have performed better,” para swimming coach Tony Ong said in the Philippine Sportswriters Association online forum yesterday.
Ong’s sentiments were shared by swimmers Ernie Gawilan, Gary Bejino and wheelchair racer Jerrold Mangliwan, who all graced the public sports program a day after arriving from the Japanese capital.
They were the only athletes to compete in what was supposed to be an original six-man squad after powerlifter Achelle Guion and taekwondo jin Allain Ganapin were forced to stay behind after testing positive for COVID-19 barely days they were set to depart for Tokyo.
A third athlete, discus thrower Jeanette Aceveda, acquired the virus in tests conducted at the Athletes Village and was also barred from taking part in her event.
This early, the Philippine Paralympic team is hoping to calendar a longer preparation and training period as it looks forward to competing in two major events next year — the Asian Para Games and the AseanPara Games.
Ong said avoiding the deadly virus at all costs was one of the problems they faced daily to the point that even their time at the Athletes Village dining hall had to be timed and lasted no more than 20 minutes to limit their exposure.
“After that, I would ask Ernie and Gary to take a bath, gargle and do all the other safety precautions so we could train and compete,” he recalled in the program backed by San Miguel Corp., the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Smart, Milo, Amelie Hotel and Braska Restaurant.
