MARGIELYN Didal may be leaving the 2020 Tokyo Olympics without a medal, but she's left quite an impression nonetheless, and surely gained lots of newfound friends.
The Filipina bet finished seventh in the finals of the women’s street skateboarding event on Monday at Ariake Park.
She came into the tournament ranked No. 17 in the world, and finished with 7.52 points on the leaderboards in her Olympic debut.
During the competiton, which stretched from morning to noon on Monday, July 26, Didal may have fallen flat on her face, may have hurt her ankle, may have scored 0 on some tricks. But all throughout, she had a huge, contagious smile on her face.
The 22-year-old was very happy to just be there.
What’s more impressive is how she made quick friends of her competitors, especially 13-year-old Rayssa Leal of Brazil, who finished with a silver medal.
For Margielyn Didal, competitors are friends, not foes
Even prior to the beginning of the finals round, Didal and Leal were seen hanging out.
Leal uploaded a boomerang Instagram story, which shows her shaking hands with Didal.
With their youthful side showing, Didal and Leal also uploaded a Tiktok video shot right before the final round.
Netizens on Twitter also noticed the friendship, and even fans of Leal showed their support for the Filipina, as well.
And that's what the skate community is all about.
After the awarding, Didal also posted a photo of the podium finishers in her IG story with the caption: “Congrats to these young rippers.”
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