Back in 2021, when the world and all that was normal in it was upended by the ravages of COVID-19, people turned to anything that would quench their thirst for hope and give them back a small sense of normalcy.

Within that dark period of history, sports gave people that escape, that little window of life while evading the dread of death right outside their homes. For Filipinos, the return of basketball leagues, as expected, provided that reprieve, with little to no expectations of hope coming from other sporting sources.

Then seemingly out of nowhere, the Tokyo Olympics, postponed a year due to the life-changing pandemic, gave Filipinos exactly what they wanted: hope, surprisingly at the cost of normalcy.

Rewriting history

No, nothing was normal about the Philippines’ campaign in Japan. Boxing, after a 25-year medal drought, suddenly yielded two silvers and one bronze, and matched the country’s most prolific run since 1932.

That medal spree alone would have been a cause for historic celebration, but star weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz decided to ride the winning wave as well, capping the campaign with an improbable golden lift that ended the Philippines’ 97-year odyssey for the ever-elusive Olympic gold.

With tears streaming down a mask-covered face, Diaz created the country’s greatest sporting moment as the Philippine national anthem was played in an Olympic awarding ceremony for the first time in a non-demo sport capacity, making for an indelible memory that Filipinos back home all shared with her.

Lifting the legacy

It is now 2024, and while the memories of 2021 are still freshly etched in the minds of all Filipino sports fans, the landscape ahead of the Paris Olympics has shifted considerably.

Diaz has all but ridden off into the sunset, now contemplating a quiet family life after being bumped off the women’s 59kg qualifiers by none other than her compatriot and fellow Tokyo Olympian Elreen Ando.

Upstarts Vanessa Sarno and John Ceniza, meanwhile, are set on making the most of their Olympic debuts in Paris, in the women’s 71kg and men’s 61kg divisions, respectively.

The narratives and pressures have been inevitably set by the icon who came before them, but the soft-spoken trio is nonetheless ready to take on all challenges and accept all outcomes, whether they result in a medal like her or not.

Keeping motivations simple

“For me, I don’t mind the pressure at all. I just have a lot of trust in myself that I can get a medal,” Ando said in Filipino. “All I need to do is improve my lifts.”

The only weightlifter in the Paris contingent who has experienced the intimidating aura of the Olympics, the 25-year-old Ando kept her advice simple for her fellow lifters who are about to step into the sport’s biggest stage.

“We just have to focus on our attempts and keep faith in ourselves,” she said.

Ceniza, actually the oldest of the trio at 26 years old, likewise does not have lofty dreams with golden gleams, but rather, he just draws his strength from people who believe in him, particularly his weightlifting idols like Diaz and another former Olympian, Nestor Colonia.

“It’s all about sacrifice and chasing goals you know you can achieve,” he said in Filipino. “It also helps that you have idols in weightlifting like Nestor, who has kept on pushing me and telling me I will get to Paris as long as I put in the work and the sacrifices.”

The same goes for the 20-year-old Sarno, who credits her own sturdy support system in building her confidence for her impending Olympic debut.

“Ever since I started weightlifting, my parents have been very supportive and always all-out for me, starting from the local competition levels,” she said in Filipino.

“Heading to Paris, all we wish for is we stay injury-free, and apply what we’ve learned in training – the little things to help us improve our personal records.”

‘Free to dream’

Pursued with the ever-burning question of medal chances in the Olympics, the weightlifting trio still remained adamant on keeping a simple mindset, by all likelihood the same one Diaz clung to in her path to Tokyo.

“We cannot predict the fortunes given to us,” Ceniza said. “But for all of us, we’re doing everything we can to put us in a position to get a gold medal.”

“It’s free to dream,” Ando added. “Of course it’d be nice to get a gold medal. Why not?”

In the Philippines’ 100-year history of competing in the Olympics, the expectations had always been minimal, with the mere qualification to the Games already billed as an outstanding achievement.

But Diaz has proven that every once in a while, a Filipino prevails above all others. A Filipino can turn small dreams into big realities.

A Filipino can.

For her Paris-bound heir apparents, why not, indeed? – Rappler.com