TOKYO - Abraham 'Bambol' Tolentino is a very superstitious man, so in the course of a historic Philippine campaign at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he wore lucky clothes and sat in the same lucky seats in venues, was accompanied by officials who he felt brought more luck, and kept out those who don't.
But Tolentino is also a confident man. The moment he stepped on the plane bound for this enchanting city, the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president was already saying to everyone who asked that this 19-man delegation assembled in the middle of a pandemic was bound to do something special.
"Three to four medals yan, pwede pa nga anim," Tolentino said once he took his seat in the plane bound for Narita airport. "Isang ginto, 'yung iba bonus na lang."
One gold and four medals in total sounded realistic enough, until you are reminded that the Philippines had done neither in 97 years of participation in the single biggest sports spectacle in the world.
But over the course of a magical 17 days, Filipino athletes exceeded the most optimistic of expectations, Tolentino's included, winning an Olympic gold to go with two silver and a bronze medal. Both the gold and the number of medals set a new benchmark for Philippine sports.
"We have re-shaped history for the Philippines in this 2020 Olympics," said Tolentino. "Such would not have been possible without, foremost, Divine Grace, and the solidarity and faith our Filipino athletes have displayed."
As good as this campaign was, it didn't start on the right foot. Carlos Yulo, the reigning world champion in the floor exercise going to the Olympics, didn't even qualify for the finals of his favorite event. Tolentino was stunned by the turn of events in the gymnastics arena, but was far from disheartened.
Then came the moment that changed the course of Philippine sports.
Going up against a Chinese world champion she had not beaten ever, Hidilyn Diaz lifted 127 kilograms on the clean and jerk for the first time and beat Liao Qiuyun in a thrilling finale that came down to the sixth and final lift.
Hidilyn not only ended almost a century of waiting for the breakthrough gold, but she also made her compatriots believe that it can be done.
'It can be done'
Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam followed suit with giant-killing runs that brought them to the finals of their respective divisions. Not to be left behind was the hard-punching Eumir Marcial, who needed less than six minutes and two rounds to put away two opponents and reach the semifinals.
Petecio and Paalam both lost in the finals and Marcial in the semifinals, but the two silvers and the bronze represented the biggest haul ever by the boxing team. The four medals also eclipsed the three bronze medals the Philippines won in the 1932 Los Angeles Games.
As the Olympic flame in the first Games to be held in the middle of a pandemic was extinguished on Sunday night, a Philippine team that won a grand total of one medal over the last 20 years suddenly found itself in a tie for 50th place in the overall standings topped once again by Team USA.
Tolentino may have been proven right, but he wasn't one to gloat. Instead of looking back, he chose to look forward, saying he has all the reasons to believe that this historic Olympic performance will be surpassed by Philippine athletes in three years time in Paris.
"Basta tuluy-tuloy lang tayo lahat ng programa at suporta, hindi lang natin matapatan, siguro baka mahigitan pa natin,” he said.
Judging from Tolentino's batting average, that's good news for Philippine sports.
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