MONEY makes the world go round.
For some, it could also lead to disagreements.
Philippine sports isn't spared of these controversies involving funding, as seen in the ugly rift between EJ Obiena and his mother federation, the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (Patafa).
The Olympic pole vaulter stands accused of falsification of documents and non-payment of his coach Vitaly Petrov's salary from his own association.
Obiena has since elevated the matter to the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the World Athletics.
This, however, isn't the first time that an athlete and a federation found themselves at odds, largely with finances being at the center of the crossfire.
These feuds go a long way back, from the time of Lydia de Vega and his Tatang's disagreements with leaders of the Gintong Alay program.
Spin.ph takes a short walk down memory lane and look back at the past incidents, hopeful that Philippine sports do indeed learn from this past missteps.
Hidilyn Diaz
Before she became the country's first-ever Olympic gold medalist, Diaz was already outspoken, especially when it comes to wrongdoings in Philippine sports.
She did just that in 2018 when she released a scathing letter to Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Butch Ramirez expressing her disapproval of the leadership of Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas (SWP) president Monico Puentevella, saying, "It is depressing how a sports leader uses weightlifting without promoting and expanding our sports, without a strategic plan, without long-term program for the athletes, and without integrity."
She furthered, "I expected a lot of changes in weightlifting but sadly, I saw some people who only use weightlifting for their own benefits and not for the benefits of our sports and athletes."
Diaz and Puentevella eventually settled that matter in a meeting together with coach Tony Agustin. Puentevella was also there when Diazcompleted her lift at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, showing that everything was good between them.
Eumir Marcial and Irish Magno
It's a tale as old as time, athletes' complaints over financial support from the federation. That was the case again early this year, this time from national baskets.
Magno was the first to plead for help, sharing that her family was struggling to make ends meet as she has yet to receive her two-month allowance.
Marcial echoed those concerns and claimed that he himself has not received support from the agencies in their buildup to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The PSC responded by saying that despite delays caused by the pandemic, the athletes' allowances were being processed. But Marcial went a step further and said the P43,000 allowance of Class A athletes isn't enough to fund their drive for an Olympic gold.
Eventually, the PSC and the Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines (ABAP) hashed out those problems and led to the Philippine boxing team having a standout run in Tokyo, with Marcial himself taking home a bronze medal.
Alex Eala
This one's different.
Last year, the PSC claimed that it has supported the young tennis star to the tune of "P3 million for her tournament travels and two-month training in Europe, US, and other parts of the world."
Eala's camp was quick to rebuff those statements, with Alex' mother Rizza Maniego-Eala writing, "For the record, we have not received any of the funds in millions of pesos mentioned."
The agency eventually retracted the statement, noting it as "unintended misinformation," and apologized to the Ealas for the incident.
James Delos Santos
Delos Santos was one of the athletes who testified against then-Philippine Karatedo Federation's corruption case back in 2018.
In a scathing testimonial on his social media accounts, he shared that he found out that the athletes were not given their full allowance for their international training camps abroad that the association's budget allocated.
Delos Santos felt he was singled out after he was excluded ffrom the Philippine karate team for the 30th Southeast Asian Games here in Manila.
"You abandoned me in Manila and did not put me in the lineup. Your orchestrated evaluation was a sham. You did this because of all the reasons I stated. I am just an athlete who has very high aspirations to achieve the best for my country and you robbed me of my right," he said.
Karate Pilipinas president Richard Lim, however, argued that there were "many reasons" why delos Santos was not part of the team, saying, "Past and present performance and final selection [are] done by the coaches and our foreign head coach."
Delos Santos eventually sat out the SEA Games, but has continued to ply his trade in e-kata for the better part of the pandemic, racking 36 gold medals in 2020 and 37 so far this year, ranking No. 1 in the individual male seniors e-kata athletes.
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Remember any more past rifts between athletes and federations involving finances? Share it in the comments section?
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