EDITORIAL - A better shot at gold?

This is what people are hoping for amid the leadership change in the Philippine Olympic Committee: the country’s first gold medal in the Olympic Games. Last Wednesday, Ricky Vargas quit irrevocably as POC president after just 16 months in his post due to what he described as “politicking” and efforts within the board to “grab power.”

The public can only hope that the POC infighting will not adversely affect the country’s hosting of the Southeast Asian Games this November. Power plays within the bodies in charge of sports development are believed to be among the reasons for the generally underwhelming performance of Filipino athletes in international sporting events, including the SEA Games.

The most disappointing is the country’s track record in the Olympics. In five years, the Philippines will mark the centennial of its participation in the Olympic Games. Since that first event in Paris in 1924, Filipinos have bagged only three silver medals, seven bronzes and not a single gold medal in the Games.

This is disappointing particularly because the Philippines was the first country in Southeast Asia to compete in the Olympics, and to win a medal – a bronze for swimmer Teofilo Yldefonso – at the 1928 Summer Games in Amsterdam. Meanwhile, several other Southeast Asian countries have won Olympic golds: Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Sports competitions boost national unity and pride. Apart from public funds earmarked for sports development, the private sector has been extending support to promising athletes. The performance of the country in international events, however, shows that the national sports development program is seriously in need of better management. The infighting in the POC should not aggravate the problem.