IT will be a merry Christmas for the country’s three Tokyo Olympics boxing medalists as they are expected to see the completion of their respective Tagaytay houses, gifts from Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, in December.
PH boxers await construction
Construction in Barangay San Jose was ongoing for three housing units, each sitting on a 110-square meter lot, for silver medalists Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam and bronze medalist Eumir Marcial.
Construction actually started a day before the medalists, Tolentino and Senator Francis Tolentino made the groundbreaking ceremony.
“This is a very previous gift,” said Petecio, who couldn’t hold her emotions and thanked Tolentino with a tight hug.
It seemed that the rewards for becoming national treasures couldn’t immediately sink into Paalam and Marcial’s conscience that the two boxers displayed mini episodes of staring blankly at their future homes which are being built close to each other.
“These are for you, for your enormous effort, for bringing pride and honor to the country,” said Tolentino, who was accompanied in the daylong activity by Tagaytay City Mayor Dr. Agnes Tolentino.
Gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz, for her part, is ready to move in to her brand-new house-and-lot, while fellow Petecio, Paalam and Marcial will be spending Christmas as neighbors.
Diaz was awed with the two-story house given to her by POC president Tolentino, who on Wednesday gave the women’s weightlifting champion the keys to one of her multi-million rewards for winning the country’s first Olympic gold medal.
“I am very grateful to Congressman Tolentino for this wonderful and blessed gift,” said Diaz, whose parents—Eduardo and Emelita—were equally enamored with the house that sits on a 220-square meter lot with a total floor area of 168 square meters.
Immediately, Diaz pointed to the yard at the right side of the house as her future home gym.
“This is where I’ll build my home gym,” Diaz told Tolentino as she toured the house inside serene Isabel Heights in Barangay Kaybagal Central. “I’ll keep the backyard as it is—that’s where we do the laundry.”
So when will the Olympic record holder move in?
“Maybe in a month? Not sure yet,” said Diaz, who’ll be returning to Malaysia with strength and conditioning coach Julius Naranjo to prepare for the world championships—the only gold missing in her collection—in November in Lima, Peru.
It was a day to honor the country’s Olympic medalists in cool, breezy and picturesque Tagaytay City.
After a Thanksgiving Mass at the Our Lady of Lourdes Parish celebrated by Cavite Bishop Reynaldo Evangelista, OFS DD, and a hearty lunch of Tagaytay City’s world-famous bulalo, the Olympic medalists motored to Barangay San Jose.
Only a handful POC and Tagaytay City officials and media attended the ceremonies. Everyone was subjected to Antigen tests and were obliged to wear face masks and face shields the entire time while observing social distancing.
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