AS the victorious Philippine Olympic squad led by double gold medalist Carlos Edriel Yulo returns home tomorrow, the national para team’s quest for glory begins as it headed yesterday for a training camp in Nimes, France before plunging into action in the 17th Paralympic Games starting on Aug. 28 in Paris.
With their coaches, national para track and field athletes Jerrold Mangliwan and Cendy Asusano, para swimmers Angel Mae Otom and Ernie Gawilan, para archer Agustina Bantiloc and para taekwondo jin Allain Ganapin left Manila for the camp, their trip funded by the Philippine Sports Commission.
“This is the first time that our national para athletes will have a training camp like this to acclimatize and taper (off) before the Paris Paralympic Games so we would like to thank the PSC for this opportunity,” Philippine Paralympic Committee deputy secretary general Milette Santiago-Bonoan said during the para squad’s send-off last week at the Philsports Complex.
“These athletes have been working hard for the last four years to get this far. Thank you for their coaches and so we all hope we can win this year. But no matter what, it is an honor to be in the Paralympics and I am very happy and proud of our athletes,” Bonoan said.
“This send-off is very encouraging for us, and we would like to take this opportunity to thank PPC president Mike Barredo and the PPC for its support. I am happy to announce that our national para athletic squad is on the right track,” said national para athletic head coach Joel Deriada.
“First of all, we would like to acknowledge God that our para athletes have reached this far.
Because without Him it would not have been possible for us to qualify for Paris,” noted deputy para athletic coach Bernard Buen, who will coach wheelchair racer Bernard Buen.
“We are in high spirits going to Paris and we hope that we can truly bring honor to our country by winning a medal in the Paralympic Games,” national team skipper, Mangliwan, a gold and silver medalist in last year’s Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China, said.
“All of us six athletes will really aim to do our best and make our country proud in Paris,” added the 44-year-old Tabuk, Kalinga native.
Mangliwan expressed hope that the momentum from his down-the-wire thrilling victory in the men’s 400-meter T52 finals in Hangzhou would carry over into his third straight stint in the Paralympic Games.
While Belgian Maxine Carabine, who topped the event in the World Para Athletics Championships in the French capital last year seemingly untouchable, Mangliwan is optimistic that he could hold his own against his rivals for the bronze medal.
They include Japanese Hirokazu Ueyonabaru and Tatsuya Itoh, who finished with the silver and bronze medals behind him in Hangzhou.
“Dahila nakalaban at natalo ko na rin sila, hopefully ang panalangin natin ay ganun ulit ang mangyari sa Paris sa tulong ng ating Panginoon,” he said.
Bonoan also used the occasion to thank Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go, the Senate Sports Committee chairman, for handling each Paris Paralympic-bound athlete P500,000 each last week to support their campaign.
