LAOAG. — After becoming the first Filipino athlete to attain a golden milestone in weightlifting at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Hidylin Diaz-Naranjo is now ready to hoist her sport to greater heights as the hands-on tournament director of the discipline’s demo debut at the 65th Palarong Pambansa here on Monday.
“Yes, it’s a dream come true for me,” Naranjo said, beaming, with coach-husband Julius Naranjo by her side, while the grunts, heaves and the sound of dropping barbells by lifters could be heard at the Laoag City Elementary School grounds Sunday morning.
“For how many years din na pinagarap ko, hindi lang ako, lahat ng weightlifting community na ma-include ang sport namin sa Palarong Pambansa,” added Naranjo, who, together with Julius, volunteered their services to run the tournament so that it could start on the right track.
“I think it (being part of the Palaro) is a very good thing because after Tokyo, you always wonder, what’s next? Of course, Hidy, we had a lot of other individual accomplishments but we wanted to do more for grassroots,” said her husband.
“We wanted to do more for kids, that is why we started our own grassroots program (with the training center), and now trying to be included in the Palaro,” he added.
“I will support what Hidylin wants to do and, of course, it is a good thing; we want to do this because it keeps us busy also. It is amazing to see how much weightlifting has grown after Hidy won in the Olympics,” the Guamanian coach pointed out.
“I won the silver and gold in the Olympics, and just like what Julius said: ‘What’s next. How do I leverage this for the next generation in attracting more athletes? With the Palarong Pambansa, that is giving them the opportunity to excel in weightlifting,” the athlete said.
A total of 70 high school lifters, including eight from their training center in Jalajala, Rizal, from nine regions, are competing starting Monday, an encouraging turnout for a sport that the Zamboanga City pride made famous through her golden performance in the Tokyo Summer Games.
The couple realized, as they engaged themselves in organizing the competition, that it took a lot of hard work for their aspirations for weightlifting to become a part of the Palaro calendar of disciplines.
“After we met with Education Secretary (Sonny) Angara, we were connected to officials of the Palaro secretariat who helped us in the process so weightlifting could become a demonstration sport,” she recalled.
“We realized that it’s not only when you want something, but you have to do the work because you have 17 regions involved,” Mrs. Naranjo said.
With the way the Palarong Pambansa is structured, starting at the division or local level and up to the national level throughout the country, the weightlifter said there are greater chances of identifying promising athletes in the sport.
“Napakaimportante to be part of the Palaro because ‘yung mga bata may ni-look forward na sila. Kasi may district, city, regional so maganda ang proseso,” she explained.
“Pagdating nila sa nationals, salang-sala na sila. We want to give weightlifting athletes a platform where they can excel,” said the tournament director, adding there will be four weight categories in each of the boys’ and girls’ secondary divisions.
Among those aiming to stand out in the demo sport is two-time Batang Pinoy national champion King Renzo Memoracion, 16, one of the couple’s trainees who will carry the colors of Region 4-A (Calabarzon).
“Maganda po talaga na ma-include ang weightlifting sa Palarong Pambansa at sana ma-sustain na po ito ng tuloy-tuloy,” the Grade 10 Jalajala National High School student said.
After a day devoted to Filipino ethnic sports on Sunday, the premier sportsfest for outstanding secondary and elementary school athletes goes full blast today, kicking off with athletics at the Ferdinand Edralin Marcos Sr. Memorial Stadium.
