Medalists reap fruits of hard labor

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino Olympic medalists Hidilyn Diaz, Nesthy Petecio, Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial have started to reap the fruits of their hard labor.

Diaz, Petecio, Paalam and Marcial were shown the houses and lots in Tagaytay City as rewards for bringing home the country’s first Olympic gold medal, a couple of silver and a bronze from the Tokyo Games.

No less than Tagaytay Mayor Agnes Tolentino, Congressman and Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham Tolentino and Sen. Francis Tolentino attended the groundbreaking event of the single-detached, two-bedroom with attic units worth P5 million in Barangay San Jose that Petecio, Paalam and Marcial would get.

Construction began Tuesday and will be finished by December.

The one for Diaz has already been constructed and fully furnished. The weightlifting Olympic champ also received a lifetime membership at Tagaytay Highlands.

“Thankful ako sa nagbigay ng unexpected blessings,” said Diaz, who will fly back to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia next month to continue her training, after their thanksgiving mass at the Our Lady of Lourdes Parish.

“As an athlete, gusto namin manalo dahil ang goal namin talaga para sa Pilipinas, we didn’t expect anything.”