[Second of a five-part Olympic series]
BOXERS may have the lion’s share of the flag-bearing duties in the Philippines’ Olympic participation, but before many of them delighted their countrymen by winning a slew of medals, athletics, also known as track and field, had many of their athletes tabbed for this energy-sapping but personally-enervating assignment.
Our fighters have carried the flag six times, including once by Manny Pacquiao. That was in the Beijing Olympics in 2008 after Pacquiao devastated David Diaz to win his fifth world professional title.
Although Pacquiao was not qualified to compete being a pro, then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo wanted to earn a few brownie points by presenting the country's most popular global sports star as flag bearer although it had never been done before. In fact, it was the first - and last time - a non-competing athlete carried a country's flag.
PART I: All the boxers who served as Philippine flagbearers at Olympics
Though boxing stars or potential stars were the popular choices, athletics contributed a fair share of flag bearers. There had been four of them, including the first Philippine Olympic flag-bearer.
That honor went to David Nepomuceno. There could not have been a second choice though because he was the only Filipino athlete in the Paris Games of 1924.
Amusingly, the task eventually fell on the broad shoulders of the Oas, Albay-born runner after sprinter Fortunato Catalon, who was supposed to compete in the same events as Nepomuceno, and decathlete Juan Taduran did not attend the inaugural games.
But Nepomuceno’s Olympic duties in France didn't come without incident.
The French Olympic Committee decided that the Philippines, still occupied by the United States then, must walk during the Parade of Nations with two flags with the USA flag on top of the Philippine flag.
Nepomuceno protested. His complaints, though, weren’t political in nature. For him, carrying two flags during the opening ceremonies would be too heavy and might affect his performance as he was to compete the following day.
His protest fell on deaf ears. He walked along with attaché B. Minelle and coach Regino Ylanan. Nepomuceno failed to advance in both the men’s 100m and 200m. It could not be determined if it was because he carried the flag or the if the competition was stronger.
Gonzaga takes turn
Four years later, it was Anselmo Gonzaga who held the flag during the opening of Amsterdam 1928, but he, too, failed to medal, reaching only the quarterfinals in the men’s 100m and missing the cut during the preliminaries of the men’s 200m.
High jumper Simeon Toribio held the duty in Berlin 1936, but failed to replicate his feat in the Los Angeles Games 1932 where he won a bronze medal, as he only cleared 1.85 meters and tied for 12th place.
Almost a half-century later, Isidro del Prado carried the Philippine tri-colors in Los Angeles 1984, but he also did not advance in the quarterfinals of the men’s 400 meters event.
EJ Obiena almost made it five in Tokyo 2020, but the strict COVID-19 protocols for the Games forced him out of the job, ceding the role to Eumir Marcial to pair up with judoka Kiyomi Watanabe.
This time, he has been excused from the Paris Games flag duty as Philippine officials are apparently saving him from too much activity being one of the country's top medal hopes in one of the most compettive athletic events.
The celebrated pole vaulter, however, has a shot at becoming the first Filipino Olympic medalist in the Olympics since Miguel White won bronze in men’s 400m hurdles in Berlin 1936.
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