Pinoys break sweat, train hard in Rio

RIO DE JANEIRO – As the final countdown to the 2016 Rio Olympics began Tuesday, the seven Filipino athletes who have settled in at the Athletes Village went out to flex their muscles in their respective training venues.

In Rio, it was 10 days before the opening ceremony. For the athletes who are already here, it’s the final push.

Seven of the 12 qualified Filipino athletes are already in town, safely tucked in Building 2 of the Athletes Village, with rows and rows of condominiums to house the close to 11,000 athletes and 6,000 coaches and officials from 206 countries.

After shaking off jetlag last Monday, swimmers Jessie Khing Lacuna and Jasmine Alkhaldi, weightlifters Nestor Colonia and Hidilyn Diaz, taekwondo’s Kirstie Elaine Alora, long jumper Marestella Torres-Sunang and table tennis’ Ian Lariba went out to train.

Lariba, in her first Olympics and tapped as flag-bearer for the Aug. 5 opening ceremony, said it’s very important for her to get here ahead of schedule.

“It’s good for all of us. On my part, I need all the extra time to familiarize myself with the competition – from the ball speed to the table and the venue itself,” said Lariba, who trained nearly two hours Tuesday morning.

“I wanted to get used to the color of the table, the color of the floor. In the Philippines our tables are blue and the floors are red. Here, the tables are of different shade of blue. The floors are green. You need to get used to that, too” she said.

“The size of the venue also affects the speed of the ball and the audio of the impact. You use that sound, that audio in making your shots. The size of the venue plays a factor. The smaller the venue, the faster the ball is. We consider all these,” she said.

In two days at the venue, made up of a warm-up area with eight tables, training area with 16 tables and main competition venue with four tables, Lariba said she had gotten a feel of things.

She hopes they could serve her well when she competes in her first Olympics. Among the 12 Pinoy athletes here, she will be the first to see action at around 9 a.m. of Aug. 6 or just 12 hours after the opening ceremony.

Lariba, the flag bearer, is having mixed emotions.

“I’m nervous and excited at the same time. There’s pressure,” she said over dinner of salmon, vegetable salad and fruits, in the company of her South Korean coach Mi Sook Kwon.

Lacuna and Alkhaldi were at the pool twice Tuesday morning and afternoon. Each visit lasted two hours, and in the company of their respective coaches, Archie Lim and American Jennifer Buffin.

“I guess everybody’s feeling better now. We’re all sleeping better. We’re all rested,” said Lacuna, who trained three months in Australia for this Olympics. It was his longest overseas training.

Last Monday, members of the Philippine delegation moved around Rio de Janeiro to loosen up.

Alkhaldi flew in the other day from Hawaii via Dallas and Miami, a trip that covered 31 hours. She will vie in the women’s 100-m freestyle; Lacuna in the men’s 400-m freestyle.

Unlike Lariba, both Lacuna and Alkhaldi are in their second Olympics after seeing action in London in 2012.

Colonia (men’s 56 kg) and Diaz (women’s 53 kg) were at the training venue at 6 p.m.

“We’re okay,” said Colonia.

Diaz, the 2012 London Olympics flag bearer, is in her third Olympics. The past few days she was coughing hard but has started to feel better with the help of team physician Ferdinand Brawner.

Alora (women’s +67 kg) trained twice Tuesday. She did plyometrics in the morning then sparred with her coach, former Southeast Asian Games finweight Kitoy Cruz in the afternoon.

“We always do that,” said Alora of her sparring session with the six-time SEA Games champion from 1991 to 2001. In Manila, she normally spars with male members of the national pool.

Torres, in her third straight Olympics like Diaz, also trained with her coach, Joebert Delicano.

Chef-de-mission Jose Romasanta is making sure everything is in place for the Philippine delegation here in Rio. He is joined here by Philippine Olympic Committee officials Jeff Tamayo, the second vice president, and Julian Camacho, the treasurer.

The Philippines is seeking to end a 20-year medal drought in the Olympics. The last time a Filipino athlete came home with a medal was in 1996 from Atlanta when boxer Onyok Velasco won the silver in the light-flyweight division.

“Things are in place. Our athletes are fully rested now and are seriously training. If everything falls into place, the medal or medals will come,” said Romasanta.