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University of the Philippines Manila Ermita, Manila

Sports Development and Athlete Empowerment in Contemporary Philippines: A Study on the Current State of Philippine Sports and the Factors that Influence the

Motivation of National Athletes

An Undergraduate Thesis Presented to the Department of Social Sciences College of Arts and Sciences

University of the Philippines Manila

In Partial Fulfillment of the Course Requirements in Development Studies 199.2 for the

Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Development Studies

Prof. Reginald S. Vallejos, MPA Thesis Adviser

Presented by: Natassia Marie G. Nalus

2012-61226

May 2017

College of Arts and Sciences


Padre Faura, Ermita, Manila

APPROVAL SHEET

This thesis, entitled Sports Development and Athlete Empowerment in

Contemporary Philippines: A Study on the Current State of Philippine Sports and

the Factors that Influence the Motivation of National Athletes, prepared and written

by Natassia Marie G. Nalus, in partial fulfillment of the requirements in Development

Studies 199.2 for the Degree of Bachelor in Arts in Development Studies, is hereby

recommended for approval.

_________________________

Prof. Reginald S. Vallejos, MPA

Thesis Adviser

Department of Social Sciences

This thesis is hereby accepted and approved as partial fulfillment for the requirements for

the Degree of Bachelor in Arts in Development Studies.

_________________________

Prof. Jerome A. Ong, MA

Chairperson


Sports Development and Athlete Empowerment in Contemporary Philippines | 1

Abstract

This research explores the topic of sports development and athlete empowerment

in contemporary Philippines. It covers the topics of the current state of Philippine sports

as well as the factors that influence the motivation of Filipino national athletes. Among

these are support given to particularly their needs such as sports facilities and equipment,

popularization of sports in the country (i.e. competition and media exposure), and

allowances—the subjects in which affect their overall athletic performance. The study

aims to identify and define these concepts, discuss the issues persisting, and provide

information from the perspective and stand of national athletes.

As a result from the data gathered for this research, Filipino national athletes

claim that support given to sports is determined by either its popularity or the impact and

number of accomplishments they have delivered and given for the nation. Proof is needed

and required from them before help comes to aid their training and performance. The

government and sports organizations, in a way, become selective and discriminating in

this matter as they are asserted to assist only a few known sports with popular athletes.

Profit-making and position in the industry is prioritized over the welfare of the country’s

athletes—those who basically create and provide the existence of sports in the

Philippines. Philippine sports generally remain to be regressive as only a few disciplines

are supported, and merely a small number of athletes improve and achieve their personal

goals and dreams as representatives of the nation.

Key words: sports development, athlete empowerment, sports facilities and

equipment, popularization, athletic performance, national athletes


Acknowledgements

First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to every person

who has contributed to this research undertaking and completion.

I would like to thank my parents and sister who has constantly supported me

throughout my challenging years of college—for every rollercoaster ride of being a

student-athlete of UPD and UPM. Thank you for always having the patience to assist me

in every academic or sports-related activity I have gone through.

To my thesis adviser, Professor Reggie Vallejos, thank you for your guidance and

words of encouragement. You have always brought joy into teaching and gave ample

time for us students to fulfil every requirement you ask of us to do.

I am also grateful for the lessons and supplementary knowledge my Dev Stud

professors have provided me during my years in the Development Studies major. You

have challenged me in many and in positive ways—moulding me into what I’ve become

since and being one with the Dev Stud majors.

Thank you Dev Stud block (with SN 2013), for always being down-to-earth and

for making me feel welcome. You have given me so much support in all Dev Stud

activities and brought about a new perspective outside my comfort zone. Thank you for

keeping things interesting. ;)

To my UP trackmates/teammates and pole vault club (PPVC and especially

Obiena family), thank you for being the same, keeping me sane, and for persistently

checking up on me. You have always been family to me.


Lastly, I would like to express my gratitude to my research participants. For my

diving family and other national athletes in different sports, this thesis is dedicated to

you. I hope that one day you will all be recognized for your hard work and sacrifice for

the country—that you’d be also given as much assistance as you need in terms of training

and competition.

Ate Hidilyn Diaz, it was an honor meeting and getting to learn from you.

Discussing my research with you definitely brought me back to my roots as a diver and

national athlete. Thank you for taking time to entertain my questions amidst your busy

schedule. Thank you also to kuya Jay Futs, for making this possible.

To one of my previous diving/training buddies, Anjoe, thank you. I hope that

you’d continue loving the sport I have truly loved despite all the mess existing within it.

To Tina, thank you as well. I will be continuously supporting you and Anjoe as you guys

reach out for your dreams as SEA/Asian Games medalists or even possibly as Olympic

participants in the future. I know you can do it.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

________________________________________________________________________

Abstract ...............................................................................................................................1

Acknowledgments ...............................................................................................................2

Definition of Terms .............................................................................................................7

List of Acronyms ..............................................................................................................12

CHAPTER 1: Introduction ...............................................................................................13

1.1. Significance of the Study ...............................................................................14

1.2. Statement of the Problem ...............................................................................16

1.3. Objectives ......................................................................................................17

1.4. Scope and Limitation .....................................................................................21

1.5. Theoretical Framework ..................................................................................23

1.5.1. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory ............................................23

1.5.2. Gidden’s Structuration Theory .......................................................25

1.6. Conceptual Framework ..................................................................................27

1.7. Conceptual Framework Discussion ...............................................................28

1.8. Review of Related Literature .........................................................................30

1.8.1. History of Filipino Participation in the Olympics: Tracing the

regressive state of Philippine Sports .............................................30

1.8.2. Post 2016 Rio Olympic Games .......................................................33

1.8.3. The Golden Age of Philippine Sports: The 2005 SEA Games .......35

1.8.4. Current State of Philippine Sports and its Athletes ........................37

1.8.5. Poor Infrastructure and Outdated Equipment .................................37


1.8.6. The Popularization of Philippine Sports: The importance of media

in popularizing, bringing development and support to Philippine

sports .............................................................................................41

1.8.7. Government Laws for Philippine Sports .........................................44

1.9. Work and Budget Plan ...................................................................................48

1.10. Research Design and Methodology .............................................................49

CHAPTER 2: Presentation, Discussion and Analysis ......................................................53

2.1. Presentation of Data .......................................................................................53

2.1.1. Profiles ............................................................................................56

2.1.2. Case Study on Hidilyn Diaz ............................................................57

2.1.3. Case Study on Anjoe Loberanes .....................................................68

2.1.4. Case Study on Cristina Onofre .......................................................78

2.2. Discussion and Analysis of Data ...................................................................87

CHAPTER 3: Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendations .......................92

3.1. Summary of Findings and Conclusion ..........................................................92

3.2. Recommendations .........................................................................................96

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...........................................................................................................101

APPENDICES ................................................................................................................104

Appendix 1. Interview Guide Questions .............................................................104

Appendix 2. Endorsement Letter ........................................................................107

Appendix 3. Transcription of Key Informant Interviews (KII) ..........................108

Appendix 4. Research Documentation ...............................................................156


List of Tables and Figures

Figure 1. Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs ...........................................................23

Table 1. History of Filipino Olympic medalists ...............................................................30

Table 2. Filipino Youth Olympic medalist .......................................................................31

Figure 2. Infographic on the percentage of gold medals won by the sporting events of

athletics, billiards, boxing and taekwondo in the 2005 and 2015 SEA Games ................36

Table 3. Work Plan ..........................................................................................................48

Table 4. Budget Plan .........................................................................................................48

Table 5. Profile ..................................................................................................................56


Definition of Terms

Asian Youth Games (AYG)

This sporting event is organized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) involving

the participation of athletes ages 15-17 from all over Asia and is held every 4

years1 at a particular host Asian country.

The second largest multi-sport event after the Asian Games, it is as well

considered as the prerequisite or qualification sporting event in preparation for the

next level of competition—the Youth Olympic Games (YOG).

Competition Exposure

This refers to an athlete’s competition experience varying locally and

internationally.

Empowerment (sports-athlete)

According to Lynn Kidman2, this refers to the athlete-centred approach which

promotes a sense of belonging, as well as giving athletes a role in decision

making and a shared approach to learning.

“Giving the athlete a voice” wherein athletes are in control of themselves, have

the power to make decisions; also provided with a sense of responsibility, valued

opinions, and responsibility of their growth in performance.

1 Asia, O. C. (n.d.). Asian Youth Games. Retrieved December 6, 2016, from Olympic Council of Asia:

http://www.ocasia.org/game/GamesL1.aspx?9QoyD9QEWPeVqKJ76yYA3Q== 2 Kidman, L. (2001). Empowerment in Coaching. Retrieved December 6, 2016, from Mind in

Sport Limited: https://mindinsportlimited.wordpress.com/2013/11/20/empowerment-within-

coaching/


Media Exposure

This refers to an athlete’s appearance on different media platforms such as

through television, radio or online/social media.

Motivation

“Foundation of all athletic effort and accomplishment providing 100% time,

effort, energy and focus into all aspects of a particular sport;” represents direction,

decision and dedication (Prime motivation’s Three Ds)3

The ability to initiate and persist at a task with giving a person a reason to do

something.

National athlete

This refers to people involved in sports who are officially part of a national

sporting team making them representatives of their sport and the country

National ranking

An evaluation competition every sport goes through annually which determines

who the best are currently in the sporting discipline and who will make it to the

national team.

Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR)

A government-owned and controlled corporation referred to as the country’s

largest contributor of funds/revenues.

Philippine Olympic Committee (POC)

3 (Jim Taylor, 2009)


It is the National Olympic Committee of the Philippines, under the International

Olympic Committee (IOC), representing the country in the most prestigious

multi-event sports competitions (Olympics, Asian Games, SEAG, etc.) supervised

by of Jose “Peping” Cojuangco Jr. since 2004.

It is a private NGO overseeing all NSAs in the Philippines.

Philippine Sports Commission (PSC)

A regulatory national agency with the responsibility of coordinating all amateur

sports development programs and institutions in the Philippines and formulating

policies on said programs/institutions.4

Olympic Games

It is considered as the largest and most prestigious sporting event among the best

athletes in the world with more than 200 nations participating.

It is the leading international sports event held every 4 years consisting of the

Summer Games, Winter Games (for ice and winter sports), Paralympic Games

(for athletes with disability) and the Youth Olympic Games (for teenagers).

Olympic hopeful

A person who is either an athlete or an aspiring athlete who dreams of becoming

an Olympian.

4 (Management, 2011)


Olympism

The philosophy behind the Olympic Games which seeks “to create a way of life

based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good example and

respect for universal fundamental ethical principles.5”

Sports equipment

Also referred to as sporting goods, these are used by athletes or aspiring athletes

to enhance their skills or protect them in sport and exercise.

It varies in particular sports and usage ranging from player, training, protective

and vehicular equipment, among others.

Sports facility

This is a venue used by athletes and aspiring athletes which may vary in terms of

the type of sport and usage.

Example of sports facilities are stadiums, arenas, gym/weights rooms, sports

rehabilitation facilities, aquatic centers, among others.

Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games)

A multi-sport event held every two years centralizing athletes from Southeast

Asian regions.

World Championships

It is an international sports competition held every year involving the participation

of elite athletes from different nations determining who is the currently best for

every sport (part of the games) in the world.

5 (Committee, Olympic Charter, 2016)


This multi-sport event includes a lesser array of sports as compared to the

Olympic Games although this competition is also considered as a preparation for

the Olympics.

Youth Olympic Games (YOG)

This sporting event organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is a

sub-branch of the Olympic Games with focus on teenage athletes aged 14-18 from

all over the world.

Held every 4 years, this international competition also consists of the Summer

Games and Winter Games.


List of Acronyms

AYG- Asian Youth Games

GAP- Gymnastics Association of the Philippines

IOC- International Olympic Committee

KII- Key Informant Interview

NSA- National Sports Association

OCA- Olympic Council of Asia

PAGCOR- Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation

PASA- Philippine Amateur Swimming Association

POC- Philippine Olympic Committee

PSC- Philippine Sports Commission

PSI- Philippine Swimming Incorporated

PWA- Philippine Weightlifting Association

RMSC- Rizal Memorial Sports Complex

SEA- Southeast Asia

SEAG- Southeast Asian Games

YOG- Youth Olympic Games


Chapter 1

Introduction

There is not a time in the daily living of Filipinos wherein they are not involved in

sports. Kids are introduced to certain activities or games which include simply running or

passing a certain object through hands or feet in order to enhance their motor skills.

Teenagers study and engage in physical movements such as swimming for survival or

training purposes, stretching before and after a particular game or strenuous activity to

avoid injuries and accidents, and many more. Most of them, including adults participate

in sports. They take part through watching competitions or games personally and or

virtually as well as doing the sport itself—either for fitness, entertainment or profession.

Filipinos value sports in a lot of ways. It is a part of their lifestyle wherein they value

activities despite their current life condition such as playing basketball for leisure on city

streets. It is an aspect of Filipino athletes’ interaction with other countries such as through

the Olympics, World Championships, Asian Games and other international competitions;

a part of the country’s growth and development as seen through the progress of every

athlete in every sport (Sicat, 2016).

It is important to consider sports as a factor to determine where the country

currently stands along with other nations. It is essential to distinguish how national

athletes are supported and whether or not their athletic performance meets the

international standards; whether or not they are able to participate at a higher level of

competition such as the Olympics. Recognizing unpopular sports is also part of the

process of defining the sports sector. Focusing more on the lesser-valued sports with

excelling athletes into empowering more people to be part or to support them is vital to


expand the public’s and the government’s knowledge about these unfortunate and

unsupported sports. Generally, getting to know their condition, needs and struggles into

achieving optimum performance is parallel to the development of the country.

Statement of the Problem

The essence of sports lies within a country and its athletes. It brings about not just

the nation’s competitors from every sport but those who aspire to become one as well.

Sports are experienced in various disciplines in which a few may not be aware of such as

engaging in competitive physical games or activities. It conveys a whole lot more than

just contest and physical fitness. As one national athlete may distinguish it, sports denote

respect, discipline and honor for the country. There are those who view sports as just

mere entertainment, but for individuals like them, being in the game they love and

excelling in it means serious business. The blood, sweat and tears in which they shed

during their years of hard work and training is all for the glory of their nation and

fellowmen. They continue to desire to represent and bring pride for the Philippines and

dedicate their time and effort towards achieving an Olympic-level or global-level athletic

performance.

Achieving optimum performance and representing the country in a variety of

prestigious international and local competitions requires much support from the

government. A lot of Filipino national athletes make do of little or no allowance, outdated

equipment and training facilities, as well as little exposure or meets. What normally

happens is that, the compliance of their needs come flowing in only after they earn a gold


medal—not silver and most definitely not bronze, unless if these were Olympic medals.

They are recognized and supported just then. What hinders an Olympic-level or world-

class performance despite the athletes’ burning passion to excel in sports is the lack of

needed support which also results to their zero exposure at an international competition

level. Consequently, this results to the backwardness of every national athlete and the

whole nation in general with regards to the growth of these individuals in this sector and

the development of sports in the Philippines.

Overall, what does sports say about Philippine development? Why are some of

the nation’s athletes belittled, not recognized and unsupported except when they win a

gold medal from preferably an international competition? One of the problems that have

to be solved in relation to the country’s sports sector is to why national athletes continue

to suffer in terms of equipment, allowances, training and rehabilitation facilities,

competition exposures and support, in general. Furthermore, why is there an existence of

inequality and bias between sports in terms of popularity and support regardless of

exemplary athletic performance achieved by certain national athletes in various sporting

events? Lastly, are Philippine national athletes considered disadvantaged? If so, what

possible programs can be made in order to uplift their sector and help them reach their

full potential?

It is said that one may determine the growth and development of a country

through witnessing an athlete’s performance and improvement throughout its sporting

career. They are both parallel in terms of advancement. These issues regarding Filipino

athletes and the sports sector as a whole must not be ignored by the government for they

may also bring inspiration to the younger generation aspiring to be like them in the


future—those whom may strengthen and nourish the progress of a particular sporting

event and might as well popularize it in the country even more.

The major question that this study will attempt to answer is “Are the updatedness

and accessibility of sports facilities and equipment as well as popularizing sports and its

athletes factors toward Philippine sports development and Filipino athlete

empowerment?” Do national athletes see these as features that influence their drive to

continue on pursuing their sports and their dreams as representatives of the country? To

answer these questions, it is necessary to break it down into the following specific

queries:

1. What does the state and abundance of sports facilities and equipment mean to the

motivation and overall performance of Filipino national athletes?

2. What defines who or what sports are to be supported by the government?

3. Why is popularizing (e.g. through media coverage of competitions or training)

sports, especially the lesser-known ones, important?

Objectives

This thesis aims to illustrate the current state of Philippine national athletes, their

needs into becoming a world-class athlete, present particular unrecognized sports, and the

parallelism of the sports sector in terms of the development of the country. The

researcher’s objectives are as follows:


Provide a brief background of the history of Philippine sports and its participation

in the Olympics and other international competitions

Describe the current situation of Philippine national athletes.

Determine the support provided to some of the lesser-known sports, and identify

the needs of national athletes in order to motivate and help them achieve optimum

performance (i.e. to break more personal bests and records as well as meet

international standards for the sports they represent in order to reach and qualify

for a higher level of competition).

Present the connection of sports to the overall development of a society.

Identify what is needed for a particular sport to be popularized and supported in

the country.

Discover if there are government policies in relation to support given to sports in

the Philippines

Recommend programs or policies for Philippine national athletes.

Significance of the Study

With the conclusion of the 2016 Rio De Janeiro Olympics, it is inevitable to

notice how Philippine national athletes have progressed in their sporting event and career

over the years. For this year, female weightlifter, Hidilyn Diaz, has broken the 20-year

Olympic medal drought after winning second place in which gave her and the country a

silver medal. She officially became the first female Olympic medalist of the Philippines

ever since the country’s participation in the 1924 Olympics in Paris, France. It is also


evident how only a few national athletes have participated in this year’s Olympic Games

with only 13 delegates. Given this, it is far from certain how Philippine sports have been

managing their athletes. Not many of the country’s national athletes get to qualify and

compete at the Olympics—the most prestigious and highest level of sporting

competition—as well as in other prerequisite international competitions. The nation’s

participants get fewer every Olympic Games and from this, it is apparent that Filipino

sports development is regressing. Alongside it, the Philippines’ growth is parallel to this

issue since sports development also presents the country’s current situation(Sicat, 2016).

This study is relevant because the national sports and its athletes are a factor

towards the development of countries. They mirror the nation’s progression through their

participation and how they perform at a certain level of competition. Thus, giving them

proper attention and support would help uplift their current status and condition which

can be an aspect towards the country’s development. Furthermore, it is timely to discuss

these matters regarding the sports sector because, with the 2016 Olympics over, countries

will get to prepare for another 4 years for the next Olympic Games. National athletes will

get to compete at various competitions locally or internationally if given a chance,

provided with the needed support and the proper attention for them to be able to upgrade

their level of athletic performance, meet the international standards and qualify at

competitions with competitors able to reach a high level of degree of difficulty. So, if

Philippine sports are properly managed, it may be probable to state that the country has

improved in terms of growth and development since it is able to provide well and sustain

its national athletes. Both the sports sector and the nation, as a whole, will epitomize

progression.


The decreasing number of Filipino delegates in the Olympics signifies that there

are lesser athletes getting to meet international standards and who are not able to qualify

at such level of competition. This is a major issue to the Philippine sports sector as it

denotes how it is behind in terms of athletic level reached and is moving backward in

terms of development. These matters may be rooted to a variety of problems faced by

Philippine sports and especially those who get more affected—its national athletes. There

are certain setbacks with regards to the popularization of sports in the Philippines as well

as with the needs of its athletes which may help them with their motivation. The possible

causes of its backwardness may be seen from the sports facilities and equipment they use

for training and competing, whether these are updated or not. Secondly, is if they receive

enough allowance to provide for their living and training needs since most of the

country’s athletes also take their sport as a professional career. Attending to their needs is

a factor to determine what motivates them to train, compete and represent the Philippines.

This can empower them and help them enhance their level of athletic performance.

Lastly, the amount of competition exposure that the athletes get on a yearly basis

especially if their games are shown in different forms of media platforms such as in

television and social media on the internet, from which may recognize them more and

boost their morale and status in the country. In addition to that, exposing more sports

besides the mainstream ones, which are usually basketball, volleyball, boxing and

football, will recognize the lesser typical and lesser known sports wherein there may be

excelling athletes which sports agencies and the government as a whole, are not aware of

and hence, which are not fully supported. Seeking these unfound talents from

unrecognized sports can be a factor to the growth of particular sporting disciplines.


Dwelling and striving to make solutions for these issues faced by Philippine

sports will help uplift the current situation of national athletes and will address this aspect

of the country’s road to growth and improvement. It will benefit the sports sector as a

whole since its weaknesses and causes of backwardness may be discovered further. Also,

this will help sports institutions and the administration as they can make the findings of

this study as a basis of formulating their supervisory plans for the ensuing year. They

may include in their plans some measures to address and correct the weaknesses so as to

strengthen Philippine sports. In turn, the national athletes will as well be benefitted for

learning more about the current situation of sports in the country and recognizing them

more as they are also disadvantaged. In the long run, the whole country will discover

more about Philippine sports from the results of the study.

Finally, the significance of this study to the theory and practice of Development

Studies, to the perception of students in sports as a means to further development and its

contribution to the university and society is that it can enable students especially from the

Development Studies major to apply what they have learned and experienced in their 4

years of college education towards the sports sector. This study may make students more

aware of how there is also marginalization happening in the realm of sports and not just

from other and more exposed issues or sectors such as in other labor sectors. It can

enlighten the academe as well as other universities and the public, in general, to know

more about the country’s standing in terms of Philippine sports and how this can reflect

the nation’s overall development. With less priority given to sports and being outshined

by other prominent issues in the country, the research provides information as to how

sports may be imperative to schools and the whole society given not only the physical


health and fitness it brings but its grassroots factor in expanding the youth’s knowledge

and importance of sports into their daily lives. It could also bring in new recruits for

sports and find new talents as students and the society get more exposed to these certain

sporting activities building a bigger sporting world not just being limited to typical sports

Filipinos play on streets such as basketball and volleyball. In addition, this is essential to

the increase of national athletes per sport and the discovery of unfound talents especially

in provinces or rural areas not reached and examined by the government. Overall, the

study’s role is vital to the expansion and development of sports as well as empowering

athletes in the Philippines today.

Scope and Limitation of the Study

This research was conducted to determine the current situation of sports

development and athlete empowerment in the Philippines as perceived by Filipino

national athletes during the last 6 months of the year 2016 as well as during the first few

months of 2017. These comprise the factors which motivate, affect and greatly influence

Filipino athletes’ level of athletic performance (i.e. topics that deal with the

popularization and support in sports as well as the present needs of national athletes).

The aspects looked into were athletes’ media and competition exposure along

with the amount and type of support given to especially lesser-known sports. This

features also their experiences of neglect within the sector. Furthermore, the research

looked into the availability and sufficiency of sporting facilities and equipment, living

and training allowances, and benefits received by national athletes. In connection to


these, a brief overview of the history of Filipino participation in the Olympics, with

emphasis on the most recent 2016 Rio Olympics, was also examined to support the study

in tracing out the growth and development of athletes’ as well as the level of performance

they have or are able to reach. The study limits itself to only some sports that participate

in the summer Olympics and does not analyze those involved in the winter Olympics,

Paralympics, and other sports which are not involved in the said major competition. This

research therefore discusses the present state of Philippine sports under such

characteristics mentioned and how it has influenced national athletes’ overall

performance.

Since this research is covered by case studies and analyses, it only deals with

specific situations of national athletes. A selected number of Filipino national athletes in

certain sports, particularly lesser-known sports, are examined. The data gathered are

through interviews (i.e. key informant), observation, participation and case studies. It is

also important to note that the results of the study would not encompass all of the sports

Filipino athletes participate in within the country. The study merely focuses on particular

topics regarding sports development in the Philippines and its participants. There are

limitations as to where and what type of sports the researcher was able to train in and or

join along with their events. Nonetheless, the researcher was able to engage in

conversations and observe sporting environment in such occasions.


Theoretical Framework and Conceptual Framework

Theoretical Framework

There are two theories which will be discussed in relation to the study. With

emphasis on Philippine sports development and its athletes, Maslow’s Hierarchy of

Needs theory and Gidden’s Structuration theory will be used in order to provide

explanation to the specific concepts examined by the researcher. These will present an

outlook on how these topics and theories are interrelated to sports in the Philippine

context.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory

Figure 1. Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Figure 1 presents the 5-level pyramidal structure of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

framework which was utilized in conducting the research through the identification of

Philippine national athletes’ general motivational needs in their sporting career. In this

theory, gratification of a need is as important as deprivation, because gratification


releases the organism from one set of needs and activates another set (Chelladurai, 2001).

This structure is most suitable for matters regarding their personal (physical,

psychological, social, mental or emotional) needs as athletes of the nation persevering,

sacrificing and struggling to bring honor and glory for the country. It addresses their

behavioural patterns in sports today and the issue of what motivates them as individuals

representing the Philippines. It examines whether national athletes are treated well

enough and are provided with sufficient living, training and competition needs. In

addition, it helped the researcher in answering questions related to the amount of support

given to various sports in the Philippines and if all of them are treated in the same way.

The setback regarding bias in popular sports is also discussed and how national athletes

are currently living in certain conditions within their sport is given much more focus and

significance for the study.

In terms of sport, Maslow’s Hierarchy in sport can be applied to highly motivated

athletes willing to work on achieving their highest potential (Year12 P.E Authority). In

the Philippine perspective, this refers to not just Filipino national athletes but aspiring

athletes as well and ones that are currently part of the developmental team or training

pool. Their needs are parallel to their athletic performance and also to their participation

in their chosen or desired sport. These eventually and will supposedly help them grow as

individuals and make them more well-rounded and stable in their career. Furthermore,

this theory brings about motivation, management training and personal development.

Above all these, their performance and progress mirrors the country’s development and

current situation.


The second theory in which the researcher learned is an efficient model in giving

more emphasis to the concepts and variables of the study is Gidden’s Structuration

theory. This model has contributed to the thesis in illustrating the clash between the

pertaining structures and agents involved in Filipino sports society. It presents the

sociology of sports giving focus on sports institutions and agencies as the framework of

Philippine sports and the national athletes as the main agents of action either towards the

progression or regression of their sector—the connection and current situation of sports

because of both entities. Neither one of them can exist independently(Dixon, 2011).

The structuration theory also stresses that the athletes themselves are the driving

force on the way to the improvement and development of sports in the country as a whole

and it is through how they organize themselves as one unified organization that their

actions would bring more impact onto the governing body—the NSAs and sports

government. In connection to this, the marginalization of national athletes will be

depicted through the barriers and difficulties they face in their sporting career given that

they are also controlled by the government. It is through this in which the study would

dwell on the current situation of sports development in the country discussing particular

issues today such as outdated and inaccessible sports facilities and equipment,

insufficient living and training allowances, and the problems of bias between popular and

unpopular sports in terms of the amount of support given to them. Hence, Giddens

together with Elias, emphasized that:

All social action involves power and unintended consequences which must be

rationally analyzed for any satisfactory account of the reproduction of societies.6

6 (ICHII, 2011)


Because of these problems on lack of recognition and empowerment to Philippine

sports and its athletes, they are unlikely to meet international standards or qualify for a

higher level of competition and are less expected to bring home awards for the country.

The human agents, the national athletes, and social institutions, the NSAs and

government, should be of the same level and not overpowering the other.7 They both

need to work together in order to improve the development of sports in the country and

strive to lessen and eliminate the occurring problems affecting the betterment of athletes

and Philippine sports, in general. It is in this theory in which the study regarding the

current state of sports in the Philippines, the athletes and their motivators would be given

a deeper and wider perspective.

7 (ICHII, 2011)


Conceptual Framework

History of Filipino

Participation in the

Olympics

State of

Philippine Sports

Popularization of

Sports

Media

Exposure

Competition

Exposure

Needs of Philippine

national athletes

Updatedness and

accessibility of

sports facilities

and equipment

Living & training

allowances

Factors that

motivate Filipino

athletes

Sports

development and

athlete

empowerment

Olympic-level

Performance


Conceptual Framework Discussion

The researcher defines the overview of the study depicting each of the aspects

which are deemed in relation to determining the current situation of sports development

and athlete empowerment in the Philippines. It begins with reviewing the history of

Filipino participation in the Olympics. Through this, the researcher aims to trace out the

progression or regression of the overall performance of national athletes and their

involvement ever since they have joined the most prestigious event in sports in order to

find out where Filipino athletes currently stand in terms of level of athletic performance.

It will also have an emphasis on the partaking of the Philippines in the recent 2016 Rio

Olympic Games. In addition, this feature will be supported by a reassessment of the

“Golden Age” of Philippine sports.

Through examining the current state of the country’s athletes, two main elements

will be looked into: the popularization of sports in the Philippines and the present needs

of its national athletes. Specific concepts under these, such as media and competition

exposure, the updatedness and accessibility of sports facilities and equipment, as well as

the living and training allowances will be critically considered in distinguishing what

motivates Filipino national athletes in its overall sporting career. Particular issues about

these topics will be studied and verified with help coming from the insights of Filipino

Olympians, fellow national athletes and coaches as well as officials in different sports.

The research would focus on two kinds of perceptions which will be obtained from both

mainstream and unpopular sports. This will then provide a line of thinking that there are

existing biases in terms of support given to specific sports which subsequently results to

the hindrances and the backwardness experienced by Philippine sports in general. It will


also be supported by details whether there are certain policies from the government in

terms of this matter. The effectiveness of sports development and improvement of

athletes depends upon these ideas in hopes of achieving an Olympic and higher level of

athletic performance.

The results from the research would contribute to more knowledge on how

sporting agencies and government may reduce and solve the difficulties faced by the

country’s athletes. Providing them with these kinds of information may help them in

producing more efficient and practical solutions to aid the disadvantages experienced by

Philippine sports. Furthermore, the study emphasizes how sports is also a sector and a

factor towards the nation’s growth and development. Both of them are parallel and sports

should not be left out and marginalized. The government must take time to dwell upon

their matters. These topics provided by the thesis shall provide a larger perspective of the

research and would supply it with more relevance, reliability and validity. Through going

in deeper into these concepts, it must be realized that not all sports get the same amount

of treatment from the government and exposed to Filipino society. It is because of these

that some of them get overshadowed by mainstream sports which are often showed much

more appreciation by sporting agencies as well as the public. In addition, due to these

matters there are still a lot of unfound talents from unrecognized and lesser supported

sports.


Review of Related Literature

History of Filipino Participation in the Olympics: Tracing the regressive state of

Philippine Sports

YEAR OLYMPIC GAMES

HOST

ATHLETE EVENT MEDAL

1928 Amsterdam,

Netherlands

Teofilo Yldefonso Swimming: Men’s 200m

breaststroke

Bronze

1932 Los Angeles, United

States of America

Teofilo Yldefonso Swimming: Men’s 200m

breaststroke

Bronze


States of America

Simeon Toribio Athletics: Men’s high jump Bronze


States of America

Jose Villanueva Boxing: Bantamweight Bronze

1936 Berlin, Germany Miguel White Athletics: Men’s 400m low

hurdles

Bronze

1964 Tokyo, Japan Anthony Villanueva Boxing: Featherweight Silver

1988 Seoul, South Korea Leopoldo Serrantes Boxing: Light Flyweight Bronze

1992 Barcelona, Spain Roel Velasco Boxing: Light Flyweight Bronze

1996 Atlanta, United States

of America

Mansueto “Onyok”

Velasco, Jr.

Boxing: Light Flyweight Silver

2016 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Hidilyn Diaz Weightlifting: Women’s

53kg.

Silver

Table 1. History of Filipino Olympic medalists


Source: (Lazaro, 2013)

YEAR YOUTH OLYMPIC

GAMES HOST

ATHLETE EVENT MEDAL

2014 Nanjing, China Luis Gabriel Moreno (with Li

Jiaman of China)

Archery: Mixed

Team

Gold

Table 2. Filipino Youth Olympic medalist

The Olympic Games is the most prestigious and highest level of sporting event an

athlete could ever reach. It is the “athlete’s ultimate dream” to qualify and make it into

the games representing their respective country. It strives to promote the pursuit of

excellence, joy in effort, fair play, service and peace (Olympism) among nations

(Committee, The International Olympic Committee, 2016). This is where different sports,

cultures and races meet and where the world’s greatest athletes present their years of hard

work and sacrifice in order to become the best that they can be and bring honor for their

nation.

Zero gold, three silvers and seven bronze medals. With the Youth Olympic

Games excluded from the medal count, these were the only Olympic medals won by 9

Filipinos ever since the Philippines first debuted and participated in the 1924 Paris

Olympic Games. This downtrend questions the management of sports in the country. For

years, it has been a struggle for the nation’s Olympic delegates to bag a medal for their

motherland. That Olympic gold medal has perpetually been elusive to earn. What is

worse is that national athletes find it difficult to qualify at this type of competition and

meet certain international standards. Not many achieve that Olympic-level performance


and are able to compete with the best athletes in the world. Furthermore, the medals won

by Filipino Olympians are predominantly from similar sporting events—boxing,

swimming and athletics—with exception of this year’s Olympic medal from the sport of

weightlifting.

The Philippines has also been continuously compared with other neighboring

countries such as Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia in terms of Olympic performance

and other international meets. Their success and improvement is incomparable to the

continuous regression of Philippine sports. Even though the said countries have garnered

medals in the same set of sporting events per Olympic Games and have participated a lot

later than the Philippines, they have acquired more medals and have been consistent in

providing even a few of them for their hometown(Henson J. M., 2016). There are aspects

as to why other countries thrive and others fall short or are merely average when

competing in such sporting events. Elements which may determine poor performance are

lack of concern and ignorance. Above all, weak leadership has been prevailing in respect

of Philippine sports development. There is a necessity for a proper leadership movement

and recruitment of officials who are for sport in order to supply the needs of particular

sports especially ones in which Filipino national athletes may or are currently excelling in

(Sicat, 2016).

According to Filipino sports analyst, Joaquin “Quinito” Henson (2016), there are

five basic reasons as to why Philippine sports has retrogressed: disunity, politics, poor

infrastructure, ignorance and low priority towards sports by the government, and the lack

of leadership. Coming from these, it has been perceptible that the chief problems begin

from the ones above it all—the government and leaders of sports institutions. Their lack


of cooperation has resulted to overdue plans and endless discussions for sports

development. Internal wars have deeply affected NSAs especially its athletes. Henson

referred to these NSAs as “virtual political battlefields.” For instance, it has cost some

talented athletes’ exclusion from the training pool as well as the training, migration to,

and representation of other countries. If leaders themselves cannot handle such

misunderstandings and unfinished agreements within their assigned positions and offices,

what more their athletes and their respective NSAs?

The POC has taken an active hand in cleaning up the mess but the fixing is far

from over. Government officials aren’t on the same page when it comes to

promoting sports. A clear example is PAGCOR and PCSO ignoring the law to

remit less than what is mandated to the PSC. Another example is how

negotiations to acquire property for a new training center can’t seem to progress

beyond the discussion stage.8

Post 2016 Rio Olympic Games

In the recently concluded 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, the Philippines have

bagged a silver medal from weightlifter, Hidilyn Diaz. Diaz has officially broken the 20-

year Olympic medal drought for the country and has been the first ever Filipina to win at

the Olympic Games. Her triumph was unexpected as Diaz herself has only eyed for a

podium finish—a bronze medal. In accordance with this, Chef-de-mission Jose

Romasanta considered this Filipino accomplishment as “a good run” for the country

(Cordero, 2016). It has been regarded as a stepping stone for the country in terms of the

improvement of sports and has inspired ideas in preparation for the upcoming

international competitions most especially for the next Olympic Games in Tokyo. In the

same article entitled, It was a good run in Rio for Philippines, Romasanta (2016) has

8 (Henson J. M., 2016)


emphasized the necessity for the discovery of talents for broadening sports development

in the Philippines. In order to have more Filipino athletes qualify for the Olympics, there

is a need to dwell on particular sporting events in which the country excels in and from

here, produce the future representatives of the nation. There has to be people who would

strive to find these unfound talents from not just the city but from different provinces as

well and support their unacknowledged skills(Cordero, 2016). Aspiring and

unsubstantiated athletes from rural areas would need extra government support for their

areas lack diverse sports facilities and equipment and these would only be found in the

city, although limited in number.

Olympic silver medalist, Hidilyn Diaz came from a small town in Zamboanga

City herself making do of whatever equipment she has in pursuing her Olympic dream.

From homemade barbells out of plastic pipes and concrete weights to donated and

outdated barbells and weights, she has worked her way through every competition, record

and personal best up until she has made it into the Olympic Games (Pareno, 2016).

Diaz’s latest achievement and inspiring story has motivated more Filipino Olympic

hopefuls especially fellow young weightlifters (Saberon-Ablayan, 2016). Recruiting such

athletes and building them into champions in the future would require a steady system in

the overall management of Philippine sports.

In order to progress in the sports realm, Romasanta (2016) has stated the need for

an organization and an acknowledged program that is well-structured and professional in

the matter of approach with a niche in management. Discussed arrangements or plans

within government and sports institutions have to be pushed, done and not only talked

about. Primarily, however, a prerequisite of appropriately and professionally solving


internal difficulties must be accomplished (Cordero, 2016). On the other hand, Sicat

(2016) follows this up with the call for programs which enhance sports development that

are parallel to Filipino athletes’ athletic capabilities and particular physique. It is

important to note that not all aspiring athletes are genetically gifted with specific talents

for sports and others would really have to work their way through learning such detailed

and technical skills for a certain sport.

We do not have to think of the luck of the genetic draw in nurturing a Usain Bolt

in our midst. That will not happen. But we are capable of producing much better

than what we have accomplished so far.9

The Golden Age of Philippine Sports: The 2005 Southeast Asian Games

Apart from the Philippines clinching its third official silver medal from 3-time

Olympian, Hidilyn Diaz, the country especially its sports institutions has not forgotten the

overall championship triumph Filipino national athletes have achieved in the 2005 SEA

Games. Hosted by the country itself, the nation’s athletes have bagged a total number of

291 medals winning 113 golds, 84 silvers and 94 bronzes respectively. Ranking first

among a total number of 11 countries, the event has marked the year the Philippines

performed best in relation to sports. It was one of the brightest moments for Philippine

sports aside from the Olympic silver medals won by Anthony Villanueva and Mansueto

“Onyok” Velasco Jr. of boxing and Hidilyn Diaz of weightlifting (Juico, 2016).

There are four sporting events in which the Philippines has consistently

performed and delivered SEA Games medals in. These are the sports of athletics,

billiards, boxing and taekwondo. Despite the degeneration of some sports, these

9 (Sicat, 2016)


particular disciplines have always uplifted the medal tally of the country and have been

providing a steady contribution (Panaligan, Sports, 2015). From the same article entitled,

SEA Games results hint at alarming decline of PHL sports, Panaligan presented this

infographic regarding and highlighting the total percentage of gold medals earned by the

4 sports with inclusion of their 2015 SEA Games performance and gold medal

contribution for the country.

Figure 2. Infographic on the percentage of gold medals won by the sporting

events of athletics, billiards, boxing and taekwondo in the 2005 and 2015 SEA Games.

Source: (Panaligan, Sports, 2015)


Current State of Philippine Sports and Its Athletes

There is a huge and continuously growing body of discussions, criticisms and

realizations on the situations and issues Philippine sports and national athletes have and

are currently facing over the years. This is officially presented through their

performances in various and prestigious sporting events such as the SEA Games, Asian

Games and Olympics. What the athletes deliver, especially in these recognized occasions,

for the country indicates their present status and level in a particular discipline. It is after

these certain incidents as well wherein different concerns from sports arise and are

gathered from the Filipino delegates.

This section of the researcher’s review of related literature will focus mainly on two

specific needs of Philippine national athletes which are updated sports facilities and

equipment as well as their individual allowances for both living and training or

competition purposes. The examination of data which will predominantly come from

recent articles would presumably lead to its parallelism with the country’s contemporary

status of Philippine sports and its athletes.

Poor infrastructure and outdated equipment

A common barrier among Philippine sports is the lack of updated facilities and

equipment per sporting event. This has been one of the grave effects of the low priority

and ignorance by the government and sports institutions out of the basic reasons as to

why sports in the Philippines has retrogressed (Henson J. M., 2016). Former PSC

commissioner, Jolly Gomez (2014), points out that the government is the main “catalyst


for change.” He stressed that the government could solve the multiple problems

prevailing in sports today as they have the money, resources, manpower, infrastructure

and network to provide the specific help needed in Philippine sports (Henson J. , 2014).

Their lack of attention has caused sports institutions to suffer decay and witness the

unending downgrade of its athletes’ performances. Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M.

Angara (2016) highlights as well that without the government funding for Philippine

sports comes lack in sports infrastructure(Joble, 2016). In the same article, Angara stated:

The Philippines only has 20 stadiums that have at least 10,000-seating capacity.

Meanwhile our largest, the Philippine Arena, which can seat up to 55,000, was

only inaugurated in July 2014. If you count public swimming pools, there are less

than 100 nationally, or a ratio of less than one for every one million.10

An example of this occurring decay in the overall sporting realm in the country is

the dilapidated, cramped and suffocating Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC). Built

in 1934, this has been home to most of the nation’s athletes and sports organizations. For

years it has rarely been renovated nor upgraded to support the maintenance of the venue

and training grounds for its athletes(Sicat, 2016). What has now been alarming athletes

and other sports advocates is the recent debate regarding Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada’s

plan to convert the Rizal Memorial Coliseum into a commercial center—a shopping mall.

It has also been stated in the same article, Erap Plan to convert Rizal Coliseum into a

mall scored, that this project will be a joint venture between the City Hall and

businessman, Enrique Razon (Sembrano, 2016). Heritage Conservation Society

President, Ivan Henares (2016) is one of the sports and environmental advocates who

have argued the need to save and protect the venue. This historic sports complex located

10

Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara (2016)


in the heart of Manila has not just been noteworthy due to its architecture and culture but

also has been recognized as a major location which has hosted big international sporting

events such as the Asian Games and Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Save Manila (2016)

has created a petition to defend the national sporting complex and calls for the Manila

City Government to redevelop and improve its facilities instead—promoting a greener

environment and sports development (Metro, 2016). In relation to this, the National

Museum’s cultural properties and regulatory office head, Angel Bautista (2016),

accentuates the meaning of a sports stadium under the National Heriatge Law of 2009:

“A presumed important cultural property” (Sembrano, 2016).

Philippine national athletes need more training grounds in both urban and rural

areas in order to fortify their level of performance. Even though the city has most of the

sporting facilities and equipment as compared to provinces, other urban communities are

short in public areas for sporting events. They are not easily located and if so, they are

not cared for and management is inadequate(Sicat, 2016).

Further indication on the outdatedness and the insufficiency of sports equipment

for a particular discipline sprouted from the trending news and viral video on social

media of two of the Philippines’ diving representatives during the 2015 SEA Games in

Singapore. The “two perfect zeroes” from their failed dives led to their last place finish in

the men’s 3m springboard event (Regan, 2015). This has marked one of the most

embarrassing moments Philippine sports have ever encountered. The two divers, John

David Pahoyo and John Elmerson Fabriga, have been ridiculed because of this poor

performance and up until today the incident has not been forgotten.


In the article, Two divers, one diving board, and a pool of embarrassment for

Team Philippines, Pahoyo mentioned that he and Fabriga only had four days to officially

practice for their synchronized diving event, despite that where they have been

unsuccessful was in their individual event. It was pointed out that their incapability to

practice at a much better facility other than the RMSC diving pool was a large aspect in

their performance. In addition, the said venue was the best and only operational diving

pool in the Philippines (Panaligan, Sports, 2015).

Compared to Singapore’s top-notched facilities, the RMSC diving pool only has

one 3m springboard. In contrast to this, the said diving facility is not the only best

resource for aquatic sports. Trace Aquatic Center located in Trace College Los Banos,

Laguna gratifies the necessities of Philippine national swimmers and divers in

international aquatic competitions. Chosen as the Philippine Center of Excellence for

Aquatic Sports by the Philippine Amateur Swimming Association (PASA), now called

Philippine Swimming Inc (PSI), the country’s top swimmers and divers has stopped

using the facility and the venue has no longer been that much open to other aquatic

events, training or competitions. The national athletes have been relocated back to the

RMSC and left to use its facilities instead, for the reason that officials from the NSAs and

sporting institutions managing them and handling their access to the fully-equipped

aquatic center had been corrupt. Chairman Mark Joseph of PASA, now PSI, owner/CEO

of Trace College and previously part of PAGCOR, Dr. Efraim Genuino, and then-PSC

chairman, William Ramirez, had misused the funds supposedly for the benefit of national

swimmers and divers as well as the refurbishment of the Trace Aquatic Center and its

equipment. The three officials from the three governing bodies of Philippine sports


together with five other officials have recently been indicted for violating the RA 3019 or

the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act(Panaligan, Sports, 2015).

Given this, it is ironic as to how such leaders belonging to the sports government

are given opportunities to handle sporting funds or able to retain a high status in different

areas related to sports in the Philippines. It is also a shame that they are all connected to

one another and were from top positions in the said sports governing bodies. Former

Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) Chair Efraim Genuino even seeks

dismissal of his actions, stated from the article mentioned above, through the

Sandiganbayan (Cayabyab, 2016).

Popularization of Sports: The importance of media in popularizing, bringing development

and support to Philippine sports

With electronic media platforms constantly changing at the speed of light, there

have been continuous upgrades to technology as well as more people buying and

consuming its wide range of products. Sports fans can now watch their favourite athletes

and teams in television sets, computers and their phones at any time or even at any place.

It has given more credit to sports as its fans can now participate virtually unlike before or

in some instances wherein they only have the option to just buy tickets in order to watch

a particular sporting event. Today, sports fans are able to view sporting events in high

definition, able to watch replays and even able to view athletes’ movements in slow

motion.


ABS-CBN Integrated Sports head Dino Laurena is part of the movement towards

this form of sports development. Recently, they have relaunched its sports channels

giving more emphasis to different sports, athletes and their training as well as sporting

competitions. The new station ID (SID) features a variety of trending Filipino athletes

such as Alyssa Valdez, from the now-popularizing sport of volleyball, and Jeron Teng,

from the ever-famous Filipino sport of basketball(Choa, 2016). Also stated from the

article entitled, ABS-CBN champions sports development via S+A Channel, this new

production exhibiting sports, athletes and their activities, brings about inspiration and a

strong message to fellow Filipinos, athlete or not, on specific lessons and life values

athletes present and have in them being in the sports industry. They have emphasized

especially traditional Filipino virtues and have motivated the youth and inculcated in

them the love for sports. Through this media development creates a step towards sports

development in the Philippines. Featuring not only the popular athletes of today but also

displaying youth athletes training and competing in various sporting events can make the

Filipino public more aware of the current situations of these athletes and their sports.

Laurena (2016) also mentioned:

We saw how it can promote youth development in the countryside. We bring

entertainment through sports to areas that have no chance at seeing these big events,

while at the same time, we are promoting the love of sports, and it’s really about showing

the rest of the country that sports can and should be part of one’s lifestyle.11

Not only did media provide such information about Philippine sports today, the

internet media platform has spread trending sports videos to the country as well as to

others. This is where the issue of poor performance in sports such as diving, given the

viral video of the two divers failing their dives at the 2015 SEA Games. Through this

11

(Choa, 2016)


instance in social media, the government especially the ones handling sports was alarmed

and informed of where the national divers currently stand today. It has given them as well

as the whole nation awareness as to how Philippine sports are also failing at the moment.

The issues of support also come into the picture of electronic media as most sports

and national channels only display the popular sports and its athletes of today. This is

where these kinds of channels incorporate business and biases within the sports realm as

the more popular the sport, the more viewers and audience it attracts resulting to great

heights for the channel and sporting discipline (Lisa Pike Masteralexis, 2005). For

example, televised UAAP Women’s Volleyball Games has brought more credit and more

popularity to the sport as well as famous, winning and successful sports personalities

such as Alyssa Valdez, alumna from the Ateneo De Manila University’s Lady Eagles. In

contrast to all the bias and businesses involved with featuring sports in electronic media,

it has given sports like volleyball an opportunity to “get back in the scene.” Its sudden

boom in popularity is being pushed for their entrance and participation in international

sporting events despite having a lower performance standing compared to other Asian

nations involved. Providing more international competition exposure to athletes can

develop them in terms of athletic performance(Limson, 2013). These kinds of movements

must be fully considered by the government into not just providing a positive outlook and

turning point in the sport of volleyball but to other sports disciplines as well. As Limson

(2016), author of the article highlighted, that all of this boils down to the initiative of the

governing body/ies overseeing the development of sports in the county. Sporting fans

may only do much to support such athletes but with the help of the government, athletes

could progress and stand on a higher stage in the sports realm.


Given the provided literature, this proves that there are both pros and cons in

connecting sports to media. It boosts sports and athlete morale and contributes to its

development but it can also just outshine other sports in which Filipino athletes are

currently excelling in. In addition to that, sports due to its popularity may be invested by

companies and businessmen to earn more profit. What electronic media needs is to

immerse more into the Philippine sporting world especially in rural areas wherein talents

may be found and in which other sports, the government and the public are not fully

aware of. Using media to produce and recruit future national athletes and Olympians like

Hidilyn Diaz from Zamboanga, will definitely fortify the Filipino sporting world. Also,

with media exposure producing popularity in sports, there is a high probability or chance

of getting more competition exposures coming from the possibility that there will be

more supporters hence, sponsors but nothing is for sure whether their type/s of support

will be enough.

Government laws which are for the development of sports in the country

“Republic Act No. 5708: AN ACT PROVIDING FOR THE PROMOTION AND

FINANCING OF AN INTEGRATED PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORTS

DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM FOR THE SCHOOLS IN THE PHILIPPINES”

This law also called, "The Schools Physical Education and Sports Development

Act of 1969.” has some relations to the study of this research. In terms of sports

development through the creation of sports facilities in both urban and rural areas,

sections 8 to 10 describes the Philippine Commission’s power and is supposed to supply


such facilities all over the nation varying from track ovals, swimming pools, among

others. With emphasis to the said 10-year program for the development of sports facilities

across the nation must be able to provide such sporting venues in all provinces.

According to the law, Section’s 8-1012

states:

“Section 8. A ten-year program for the construction and development of sports

centers in each province is hereby authorized to be financed out of funds of the Physical

Education and Sports Center Development Commission created in Section four of this

Act. Sports centers shall be established in cities, provincial capitals or in municipalities

determined by the Commission upon the recommendation of the provincial board or the

city council, as the case may be, as the sports center site for the province, which shall

have standard grounds and facilities for track and field and ball games, gymnasia,

swimming pools and dormitory and cafeteria, facilities for coaches and athletes in

training for the regional, interscholastic and national athletic meets. The Commission

shall prescribe the rules for their administration and operation: Provided, That provisions

shall be made for the use of the facilities of the sports centers by the public and private

schools and duly organized athletic associations in the region.”

“Section 9. It shall be the responsibility of the Commission to undertake a ten-

year construction and development program of sports centers in all provinces and to

administer the funds authorized under this Act.” and;

“Section 10. It shall be the function of the Commission to decide on the plans and

specifications for the construction of sports centers or of the improvement of existing

12

(Juris, 1969)


ones; to establish the priorities for their construction of improvement; enter into contracts

for all sports center construction projects; authorize and approve payments of the same;

or otherwise perform all such other acts as are necessary to an efficient prosecution of the

sports center development program: Provided, However, That no construction or

improvement projects shall be authorized unless the site shall have been duly decided

upon by local authorities concerned and the property duly acquired by the local

government: Provided, Further, That first priority shall be given to provinces which are

immediate hosts to an interscholastic and/or regional athletic meets: And Provided,

Finally, That the national appropriation for the construction of any new sports center shall

not exceed five hundred thousand pesos nor shall the appropriations for the improvement

of an existing one exceed two hundred fifty thousand pesos.”

These particular sections indicate the law’s focus to establish sports development

in the Philippines and empower the youth especially students to engage in sports

activities through the expansion of sporting facilities within the nation in both rural and

urban communities. From the current situation of sports today, and as highlighted through

the examples provided from related literature, this policy passed on June 21, 1969 has not

been effective and has left national athletes to train and work on their skills in dilapidated

and unmaintained training grounds. It is apparent that athletes need to make do of what

they presently have—what facilities and equipment are available to them—in terms of

enhancing their level of athletic performance. Given Hidilyn Diaz’s achievement through

practicing with what she has—her own training gym at the side of their Zamboanga

house and from her “do it yourself (DIY)” dumbbells and weights to upgrading these

from donations from every competition she has joined—has proved not only the


ignorance of this law but the lack of attention given to Philippine sports, in general. Yes,

they have provided and required schools to include physical education, health and

nutrition courses in order to contribute sports skills and knowledge to students but these

are not enough for the youth to be merely more engaged in sports. Their participation in

sports must be accompanied by particular sporting equipment and sporting facilities.

Through this, one can enhance his/her skill or even discover talent in him/her.

To summarize the given related literature to the researcher’s study, it is apparent

that there are still a lot of gaps when it comes to giving priority to the development of

sports in the Philippines. Through the insufficiency and outdatedness of the most basic

needs of national athletes up until the ignored laws passed by the government to uplift

their sector, it is probable to say that national athletes are part of the marginalized sector.

This is evident based on the history of athletic performances and participation in various

international competitions. Overall, the regressive state of Philippine sports development

also gives a grave effect and impact towards athletes’ motivation.


Table 3. Work Plan

JUN JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY

Orientation

Introduction-

Conceptual

Framework

RRL

Thesis

Proposal

Data

Gathering

Thesis- 1st

draft

Final

Revisions

Thesis

(final)

submission

Table 4. Budget Plan

Transportation Php 30.00

Binding Php 300.00 (allotment)


Research Design and Methodology

The descriptive-qualitative research was used in this study. It is in this type of

research design wherein the researcher gained a rich and more complex understanding of

people’s experiences. This particularly looked upon the current situations or conditions of

Philippine sports and its athletes. This was also used in hopes of identifying specific

problems and topics explored by the study such as regression in sports, outdatedness of

sports facilities and equipment as well as the insufficiency of athlete allowances to

support their living and training/competition needs. It helped uncover a deeper meaning

and perspective regarding the researcher’s problem and what the study wants to

determine about the specific issues involved. This process of research allowed the

researcher to perform informal methods of gathering data so as to provide its research

participants with more freedom and spontaneity in giving out detailed information

regarding the topic/s. This enabled the researcher to describe things as they are—as how

its research participants first-handedly illustrated and expressed certain concepts. The

questions that have been answered using this method are: What challenges do national

athletes face? What are their perceptions regarding certain issues? What is their current

situation? The researcher also gathered facts from a smaller number of participants since

the method/s involved were time and labor intensive.

The second and last research design which was used in the study is the

advocacy/participatory approach (i.e. also called emancipatory and similar to

participatory action research (PAR)). Since this study aims to contribute information

regarding the development of sports and empowerment of its athletes, one of its goals

was to provide a positive change in the lives of the research participants particularly


national athletes. This helped and brought about the sports sector’s right to be heard. The

researcher participated in some of its research participants’ activities—through training

and watching their competitions—and got to experience their sporting lives. The

researcher wanted to use this approach for the reason of being a member of a sporting

organization and have been a member of the junior national team. This enabled to bring

about awareness and the need to prioritize sports more, given that national athletes are

considered a marginalized sector in the Philippines. In addition, the researcher examined

some laws or policies related to the study. It gave emphasis to whether or not there were

specific laws for the development of sports in the country.

Provided with the set of research designs, the researcher prepared specific

methods to accompany the study and which will best bring about a deeper view into its

topics or concepts. These methods used were: key informant interviews (KII) or in-depth

interviews, case studies, and library and internet research.

Key Informant Interviews (KII)

Also called in-depth interviews, this research method is vital to the researcher’s

understanding of what is currently going on in a particular community—the sports

community. According to the UCLA Center for Health and Policy Research, the KIIs’

aim is to collect facts from a wide range of people such as, for this study, officials,

professionals, coaches and national athletes, among others. This enabled the researcher to

analyze more of what is currently going on within the sports sector or a certain sport. It

gave the researcher insights as to what its research participants have been recently

fighting for, what have been their struggles, and what they need in order for them to


progress, increase the development of sports and bring empowerment to national athletes.

The KIIs conducted were through face-to-face interviews and online interviews through

personal messages or conversations.

Case Studies

Case studies were used by the researcher in order to provide the study with a

collection of detailed descriptive data.13

Through this, the researcher was able to illustrate

and document, in relation to the study, the personal life stories and experiences of

national athletes. It enabled the researcher to obtain specific data regarding sensitive and

specific issues faced by athletes and Philippine sports, in general, first-handedly from the

research participants themselves. This method gave the researcher’s thesis more validity

from the diverse and abundant articles and journals discussing about Philippine sports, its

officials and its athletes, as reviewed and examined for the review of related literature

section.

Library and Internet Research

Library and internet research enabled the researcher to have some sort of balance

in obtaining information from both. With internet as being the most used for locating

different sources of data, library researcher was still needed in order for the researcher to

locate specific concepts related to the study in which were published by a wide array of

authors. Internet research, on the other hand, was used by the researcher to find articles

and journals which are especially up-to-date since there will always be changes regarding

particular topics which are included in the study. Also part of this research method, was

13

The case study method. (n.d.). Retrieved December 6, 2016, from psychking.net: http://www.psyking.net/HTMLobj-3838/Case_Study_Method.pdf


the ability of the researcher to obtain news articles in connection to the problems and

situations occurring specifically in the realm of sports in the Philippines.


Chapter 2

Presentation, Discussion and Analysis

Presentation of Data

This section of the study presents the data gathered by the researcher through key

informant interviews. Collected information will be demonstrated through a series of case

studies discussing various topics in relation to the research problem. Particular topics

examined the current state of Philippine sports, the key informants (i.e. national athletes),

and their respective sports; athletic motivation with focus on sports facilities and

equipment as well as the popularization of sports in the country; their allowances as well

as other sporting benefits; and lastly, their thoughts on the relationship of sports and

Philippine development overall.

What defines popular and unpopular sports in the Philippines? How are these related to

support in athletic performance?

Disparity in terms of support for sports in the Philippines exists for reasons often

related to its popularity in the country. A factor is whether they are available to the public

as well as are presented to them by means of media exposure (e.g. television and radio).

Through televising sports, for instance, athletes get to display their talents and how their

games or matches go about. Sports personalities also arise as they are regularly seen by

Filipino sports enthusiasts. As their competitions are shown to the audience on national

TV, viewers are as well likely to watch their games live and are thus, willing to wait in

long lines and pay for entrance fees where these take place. These few fortunate sports


are claimed to be generally the mainstream ones such as basketball and volleyball (e.g.

UAAP and PBA matches).

Provided that these particular sports could attract and give interest to numerous

Filipinos, they are also able to make additional profits from these viewers. In effect, this

catches the attention of private entities and other sports enthusiasts. They offer

sponsorship deals and supplementary necessities or supplies used in training and

competitions for the athletes or teams they root for. Accordingly, their help could

possibly lead to better athletic performances and victories, and in turn, produce more

income for them as these athletes continuously get popular through their successes. In

addition to their profit-making and sports popularity, the teams or athletes these

companies or businessmen choose to help often also endorse their products (e.g. Gatorade

by Alyssa Valdez and Terrence Romeo). As a result, both these businesses and popular

sports gain more.

A part of how sports popularize in the country is how athletes perform and

whether or not they can deliver and produce medals for the nation. The government and

sports organizations require them of concrete results before they get endorsed. In view of

that, medalists also obtain the most credit and are at most times treated better than the

contrary—the non-medalists. There is, however, a setback with regards to athletes

winning medals since not all of them get to compete in both major and minor

competitions due to lack of funds. No financial support means forced refusal to

participate in these meets or only a selected number of members get to compete as

representatives of their sport and the country. Thus, producing medals is uncertain also

given that, not all athletes have much experiences competing in different settings.


It is unlikely for athletes especially those which are lesser known to the public

(i.e. are not much presented or televised) to get sponsored or to be provided with

assistance in their training and competitions. Unpopular sports crawl their way to triumph

receiving little aid as well as given the fact that there has always been an existing

problem in terms of budget. Alongside this are management and leadership issues due to

administrators fighting for power, fame, and money. Because of this, athletes get affected

and thus, progression is unsure and delayed. Sports and its athletes with little recognition

also suffer a double burden in terms of support as many do not acquire medals or the

proofs that their overseers require of them since, as previously mentioned, they merely

get to participate in competitions a few times a year and not all of them get to compete in

them.

To summarize, the availability, medal-winning performances of athletes, and

exposure of particular sports to Filipinos define their popularity in the Philippines.

Accessibility to these sports mean that they can be seen and played by the public in many

areas and as long as its necessities for games can be acquired or easily improvised.

Medal-winning athletes add up to sports recognition as they have proven something out

of the sport and brought honor for the country. Most importantly, media exposure (i.e. by

television, among others) has the biggest effect on popularity as sports enthusiasts from

different parts of the nation unite and get to watch or even imitate how their sports are

played on a regular basis. Accordingly, endorsements and sponsorship deals flow in as

businesses would want to invest on these triumphant athletes that also bring a huge

impact and attraction to the public. In addition, government and sports organizations do

similar actions and increase their support for these popular sports. Sequentially, support


given to these particular sports enables its athletes to compete more alongside with

sufficient training and competition needs and thus, boost their chances of winning more

medals or even achieving their personal goals as athletes.

On the other hand, unrecognized sports are those opposite to what has been

mentioned earlier—inaccessible, rare, and unexposed much to Filipinos. Achieving more

for the sport becomes more difficult as its athletes also do not receive enough support in

terms of training and competition. Budget is often mentioned as the main and root

problem to athletic progression leading to lack in sports facilities and equipment,

competition exposure, and other sporting needs and benefits. Medal-winning athletes are

unusual as only a few get to rise and achieve their dreams. On top of that, perseverance of

these triumphant athletes is usually not enough to popularize their respective sports; and

if ever recognized, fame and support may be temporary or short-lived.

Table 5. Profile

Name Age Hometown Sports, NSA &

Years of

Participation

School & Other

Occupation/s

Achievement

(greatest)

Hidilyn

Diaz

26 Brgy. Mampang,

Zamboanga City

Weightlifting

(PWA); 14

years

De La Salle-College

of St. Benilde (DLS-

CSB); Philippine Air

Force

Olympic

silver

medalist

Anjoe

Loberanes

22 Talibon, Bohol Diving (PSI); 9

years

Technological

University of the

Gold

medalist


Philippines (TUP) (international

competition)

Cristina

Onofre

21 Manila Gymnastics

(GAP); 12 years

University of the East

(UE)

SEA Games

bronze

medalist

Case Study on Hidilyn Diaz

Brief background

Hidilyn Diaz is a 3-time Olympian and currently a Philippine national athlete

representing the sport of weightlifting. Now 26 years old, she has been known for her

Olympic triumph (i.e. winning an Olympic silver medal) at the recently concluded 2016

Rio De Janeiro Olympic Games. She currently lives within the city of Manila close to her

training grounds, the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC), as well as her school, De

La Salle-College of St. Benilde (DLS-CSB) as she is also finishing her tertiary studies

taking up a major in Business Management. In addition, she has as well been serving for

the Philippine Air Force being an airwoman (first class).

Coming from the Barangay of Mampang in Zamboanga City, she started her

sports career in weightlifting by the time she tried the sport out of curiosity. She saw her

cousins playing this sport for fun using improvised materials particularly using branches

of Ipil-ipil as barbells. The sport caught her interest right when she saw them playing

happily and eventually gave it a try. At that moment, she instantly loved the sport and felt

that she belonged in weightlifting. By the age of 11, she made her debut competing in


Batang Pinoy held at Puerto Prinsesa wherein she won a gold medal in the absence of

other competitors. At her second competition, however, she won a silver medal and

finally had competitors to compete with. Winning that silver medal boosted her

motivation to improve more and had her eyes on winning gold the next time around.

Since then, she has been working hard in training even from starting out with

literally little materials at hand; that is, making use of equipment she had and ones that

have been donated or given to her (e.g. makeshift gym, dumbbells and barbells). After

two years, at the age of 13, she became a member of the Philippine national team and

from that time, is able to live and train at the RMSC along with other national and

developmental athletes. Up until today, even as being a student-athlete, she has been

working hard to beat her personal best and to be able to continue representing the country

in various upcoming competitions such as the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games),

Asian Games, World Championships, as well as qualify for the next Olympic Games to

be held in Tokyo.

The Current State of Philippine Sports

In Diaz’s perspective, the current state of Philippine sports remains messy and

disorganized and as a result, has not been progressing. Although not specified clearly, the

Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) is said to have been open to changes in the system

in order to improve Philippine sports. The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), on the

other hand, abides to its traditional views in sports; one that makes sure that they acquire

the credits and one that prioritizes them and their self-interests. She praises the long-time

and current POC chairman, Peping Cojuangco, for his intelligence although contradicts


his actions of not putting the politics into place. At present, the PSC and POC is also said

to be not in good terms. Athletes like Diaz who has been in the sports industry for a long

time knows that often, there are disagreements, internal conflicts, which affect the sports

organizations’ plans for sports and mainly its athletes.

Diaz emphasizes that the priority must be given to the athletes since there are no

sports without them. Sports will not exist without its participants. It is them who works

hard and has been training for years to uplift Philippine sports. “Wala ang sports kung

walang atleta. Hindi mabubuhay ang sports kung walang magpaparticipate.” These

sporting agencies must put concern to the country’s athletes and not their pockets; hence,

their self-interests. If they love the Philippines and the sports, their actions should not

affect the welfare of the athletes (i.e. negatively) and put them at stake. They should not

hold them accountable or threaten them since they are the head and often the athletes’

primary supporters (e.g. competition exposure abroad, etc.). Money is supposed to be

used for their benefit; for promoting Philippine sports in general and is not to be

pocketed. The overseers of this system must think about the state of their athletes and not

more on their position and all the perks that come with it. With these conditions ongoing,

Philippine sports stays unstable or worse, may further regress.

Not only does Diaz feel frustrated about the sports institutions’ disorder but also

every other national athlete who is also a core witness to all the problems occurring

within the realm of sport in the Philippines. In addition to her aggravation in sports are

the personal problems she faces as an athlete and as under weightlifting’s national sports

association (NSA). It has been three months wherein she has not yet received her

allowance. She feels left behind and sees that there is no privilege given to athletes even


after winning an Olympic medal. Their NSA is also uncooperative and separated since

what they often want is “power, fame, and money” and is said to be doing nothing for the

betterment of its athletes. No programs, seminars, or plans are made them. Diaz stresses,

like what was mentioned earlier, that they put more attention to their self-interests. Their

actions as well affect the athletes and thus, become hindrances to their dreams in sports.

She, too, feels depressed as she is too occupied with so many priorities—college

and training. She cannot and does not want to complain and fully depend on them (i.e.

NSA) any longer.

With these kinds of burden, she gets to solve most of her frustrations through her

motivators, believers and friends. They are the ones who encourage her to continue

training whenever she is feeling down or on a slump. She gets words of wisdom from

them and keeps her grounded by means of making her realize why she is doing what she

is doing, to think about her future as well as remind her that she is currently an inspiration

to athletic aspirants, the youth, and even Olympic hopefuls. In addition to that, even

though there have been internal conflicts between the overseers of Philippine sports, Diaz

states that the PSC has also been supportive.

The POC’s activities and plans for Philippine sports however, have been

questionable. They have been politicking over the country’s athletes even before the

Olympics. They also tend to turn things around and push athletes down or destroy them

through their power and words (e.g. “Wala yan disiplina! Hindi yan mananalo!”).

Because of this, she lost her trust in them and has not been sharing her concerns anymore

with them. Diaz highlights that they should not destroy the athletes since they are the

ones, who know what athletes like her, personally need.


Allowance and Sports Benefits

Diaz mentions that she receives a monthly allowance of Php 43,000 which she

states, is not enough for all of her necessities (e.g. her food costing Php 21, 000, dorm

rent, among others). As a result, Diaz requests for extra income from her family back in

the province. She as well does not get any additional allowances or benefits from

competing abroad but on the brighter side, is sponsored by athletic companies such as

Under Armour. She is now their ambassador representing the Philippines. On top of that,

Diaz won the Athlete of the Year award from the recent Philippine Sportswriters

Association (PSA) Awards.

Discussing these sporting benefits especially after her Olympic triumph has made

her emotional. Others have told her that what came with her victory is the fame—being

able to inspire the youth and becoming the “voice of the Filipino athletes”. In her

perspective, fame is nothing compared to being able to reach her goal in sports but this

does not mean she is going to stop working hard. She motivates herself to keep going; to

keep training despite suffering and having to deal with the people that put her down,

destroy, and doubt her. She desires to utilize her status, being the “voice of the Filipino

athletes,” for the betterment of weightlifting and Philippine sports in general. Regardless

of feeling hurt for her sport, she is stimulated to do something and help their current

system particularly the athletes. Diaz wants to maximize her time as a professional athlete

that is, for a limited period of time, being of service to her sport and everyone in the

sports realm. Even though the existing situation is difficult to handle, she also states that

she will never give up until she does something for them.


Diaz also is grateful for all of her supporters. Her achievement brought more

weightlifting aspirants wanting to become like her—representing the country and

becoming an Olympic medalist. She mentions however, that the problem is that there are

no proper programs for evaluations, monitoring, and competitions for these hopefuls in

the sport of weightlifting. This is for the reason that the supervisor within their NSA has

been “eaten by the system.” Adding up to her frustrations, she does not want to be

affected by this as she accepts that these are normal and that these things happen in

Philippine sports. As an alternative, she wants to be the one who can make a name and a

statement for their sport. She wants to make her own ways in improving the state of

Philippine weightlifting; make her competitions dedicated to aspiring weightlifters and

challenging the NSA through this in order to prove their worth. Diaz feels too ambitious

for this sport since it is in weightlifting that she grew up to be the person she is now. By

this, she desires to help the youth realize their dreams and goals in life.

Sports Facilities and Equipment

The state of the sports facilities and equipment in the central training grounds of

national athletes, the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC), has not been renovated

nor updated since 2005—the year the Philippines hosted the SEA Games. There are no

changes in terms of apparatuses used and shared by athletes. Diaz points out that their

weightlifting gym looks dilapidated and has not been renewed since the 1980s. Even

though these seem to satisfy her training needs, she also cites that as long as there is

willingness and provision of money, these things are easy to improve. Part of the problem

in Philippine sports is where the money is placed and or used for. For this reason,

supporters and sports enthusiasts such as various private sectors is said to no longer trust


the POC in terms of handling funds for sports. The overseers are also claimed to be all

but talk and no movement.

In Diaz’s opinion, sufficient and advanced sports facilities and equipment are but

a minor aspect in an athlete’s progression. These mainly boost their morale. But these

still depend on athletes and their particular sport in terms of their improvement. There are

too many sports to count and loads of technical equipment that may be required as well.

Budget provided for Philippine sports is too little or limited up to a certain extent. The

national athletes’ main training ground, the RMSC, is as well in danger of being sold and

converted into a mall. They claim this to be their home, where they grew up, and where

they experienced all sorts of emotions in relation to sports. This is where they also found

and got to know their friends—their family—as most of them are from provinces far

away from the busy streets of Manila. Diaz states that the RMSC is this important to

every athlete and its historical value needs to be preserved and not be exchanged for

money. There is an alternative venue on the works in Clark, Pampanga but it is nothing

compared to the RMSC to athletes.

Popularization of Sports in the Philippines

In Diaz’s point of view, the popular and fully supported sports in the Philippines

today are basketball, boxing, taekwondo, football, tennis, badminton, among others. She

asserts that the sport of weightlifting is “for the poor” that is why it is not being

recognized and supported like those sports previously mentioned. Businesses would want

to assist and manage the sports that could create profits for them. That is, sports with

winning athletes, or which are most of the time, exposed to the Filipino audience. This is


the truth and reality that she says she needs to accept. There are many who want to give

help to her sport but management is in the hands of their NSA, the PWA. Even if the

sport of weightlifting is still at the height of its popularity mainly because of Diaz’s

Olympic success, this is not being utilized; and because of this, opportunities offered for

the betterment of the athletes keeps on slipping out.

Before support comes flowing in one’s sports career or their for their sport in

general, proof needs to be presented to those willing to help them; gold, successes, or

possibilities of a sport to win in the future. They want to assure that who they are rooting

for would provide them back with more income. This is the truth that every athlete also

needs to accept as Diaz states. She would want these supporters or rather sponsors, to

realize that “not all athletes are born champions.” “I work hard. I failed many times to be

a champion”; as said by the Olympian herself. Not everyone is born gifted or with instant

exemplary genes for particular sports. Every athlete works and trains hard in order to

excel.

In promoting sports in the Philippines, sports personalities are huge contributors.

They represent sports as a whole and inspire the youth to engage in sports. Diaz agrees

that sports televised in national television such as the UAAP, boosts sports popularity.

Although not all are shown to the public, she adds that those not being recognized as

much as them need not to feel insecure about these athletes. Every athlete has his/her own

purpose (e.g. Mika Reyes and Alyssa Valdez playing as well as promoting the sport they

love which is volleyball) and one can make his/her own name in the industry in various

aspects. Nevertheless, Diaz also hopes and thinks that every sport needs to be featured in

different media platforms to bring awareness to all kinds of sports Filipinos play and get


to represent in a variety of competitions. The public could also get to look up to athletes

playing different kinds of sports and learn lots of things from their sports career. Diaz

adds that Filipino athletes such as Manny Pacquiao and Marestella Torres-Sunang are

among her inspirations growing within the realm of Philippine sports besides Chinese

weightlifters which she as well thinks highly of.

Motivation

What motivates the sole Filipina Olympic medalist to train further? Diaz has her

eyes set for the next Olympic Games; the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She continues to train

and work her way up in hopes of getting to represent the country once again in the most

prestigious event in sports. Besides this, she chooses to pursue her sport in order to keep

on inspiring the youth—the athletic aspirants as well as Olympic hopefuls. Diaz believes

that sports inspirations or examples are among the motivators of athletes to carry on

training for their sports. She does not want to give up since quitting also shows that there

is no future in Philippine sports. In addition, she does not illustrate that she does not

experience difficulty given that “there is no easiest way to be a champion or to become

successful.” Athletes should be ready to face everything that comes in their sports career

goals and has to have a strong will and heart in order to get through every obstacle. Even

if there are people who say negative things or doubt their abilities, with passion and

determination, they could overcome every struggle.

Sports and Philippine Development

Diaz asserts that the relationship of sports and Philippine development as a whole

is that sports unite society. Sports brings people together and enables them to improve


oneself by means of goal-setting, productivity, discipline, hard work, health, among

others. Basically, it generates sensible people that could support the country’s growth in

terms of its individuals. In sports as well, one can see his/herself and where he/she can

nurture. Accordingly, a productive and united Filipino society allows Philippine

development overall. Especially today, level-headed and rational people are needed in

order to create ideas and movements that will serve the needs of the country in all sectors

and aspects of their lives.

In relation to the sports sector, there are loads of concerns in which the

government needs be aware of and should prioritize. Diaz highly recommends a

grassroots program or organization for sports so as to broaden the reach of Philippine

sports up to the provinces. Coming from a barangay in Zamboanga, the Olympian knows

how much of the youth would want to be involved in sports such as weightlifting. They

are able to make do with makeshift gyms and equipment out of what is provided within

the vicinity but with a proper grassroots program for children like them would likely

heighten their level of play and passion for particular sports and enable them to get

connected with local sports participants as well from the city.

In relation to providing grassroots programs or organizations for sports, local

government units (LGUs) should also supply sports academies for their communities in

order to promote and invite the youth to engage in sports, provide them with the proper

foundation in developing their skills and talent, and mould them into becoming the next

generation of national athletes. The availability of sports facilities and equipment should

be nationwide and accessible to all athletic aspirants. Besides increasing the level of

sports in the country, grassroots programs and sports academies could recruit and


produce potential gold medalists from a wide range of locations in the Philippines. The

weightlifting Olympic medalist also pointed out that in China, one city has 5

weightlifting gyms or sports academies and that in the Philippines, there is only one (i.e.

the RMSC) which is even threatened into turning it to a mall. This thus, exemplifies how

much attention is given to Philippine sports as compared to other countries.

In addition to these needs of Philippine sports and its athletes, Diaz suggests that

well-thought and organized aspects related to sports should be present such as

nutritionists, sports educators, strength and conditioning, among others. These features

are crucial to developing top performing athletes. These support their growth in sports

and help them discover their potential. Another important aspect which cannot be

forgotten is the moral support coming from the whole Filipino nation. Sports should, at

all times, be a priority and must never be neglected or ignored.

In Diaz’s perspective as well, the main catalysts for change in the nation’s system

of sports starts from the bottom; the athletes and coaches. Their actions and what they

could do to the development of sports is vital as they are the ones who keep this sector

existent. They should lessen and avoid complaining because they need and have the

power to put value and a name for themselves and their sports. But with their respective

obligations, assistance is essential also from their supervisors. It is important that they

work together in unity and serve for the betterment of sports in the Philippines.


Case Study on Anjoe Loberanes

Brief Background

Anjoe Loberanes is currently a Philippine national athlete under the sport of

diving. He started diving when he discovered this sport while he was playing another

sport—swimming. While swimming, he was able to see divers train through jumping on

springboards and from platforms as well as doing various somersaults. He then became

curious about the sport and viewed it as fun. He thought about himself being capable of

doing what professional divers can do since he personally likes tumbling. Soon after, he

tried out for the sport at the age of 13.

Loberanes, now 22 years old, is one of the top athletes who is part of the

Philippine diving team trained by former national athletes, and has been competing in a

variety of competitions both locally and internationally. He is one of the many national

athletes who live within the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC) located in the city

of Manila. In addition, Loberanes recently graduated from the Technological University

of the Philippines taking up a degree in engineering. He plans to follow the footsteps of

some of his seniors, who then became coaches, in joining the Philippine Coast Guard

while pursuing the sport of diving in hopes of producing medals for the country in

prestigious competitions such as the SEA Games, Asian Games, World Championships

and the Olympics.


In Loberanes’ perspective, the current state of Philippine sports has not been

progressing although a bit improving due to the newly appointed chairman’s efforts. He


claims that in the past two months, there has been an increase in allowance, improvement

in some sports facilities and equipment, and discussions for provision of food for all

athletes. He compares the allowances he has received ever since being part of the national

diving team by mentioning that he started with earning Php 6,000, then Php 8,000, and

now Php 10,000. These respective amounts are for all non-medalists. Provided with

these, Loberanes also insists that he is not sure if what he acquires is the actual amount.

He mentions that there has been politicking occurring within their sport by means of

papers or requirements which have not been submitted regarding the national team line-

up and their individual accomplishments. He further explains other classifications in

terms of monthly allowances through stating that SEA Games victors receive Php 25,000,

Php 33,000, and Php 43,000 in order of bronze to gold medalists. On the other hand,

medalists in other international or invitational meets obtain Php 15,000 up to Php 18,000

per month.

Furthermore, the national athlete of diving expresses that he has been

experiencing problems as a member of the team with regards to the coaches and the

sports’ supervisor. Coaches for diving consist of former national athletes as well as long-

time diving instructors who may also be related to some divers today. Conflicts between

coaches occur by means of their misunderstandings, other personal dilemmas, and

whether they have a close relationship with their overseer. Loberanes emphasizes that

because of these, the athletes get affected. He stresses that their problems should not be

theirs. Because of their disagreements, divers also get separated in groups within one

training ground and practice either separately or at different time schedules depending on


whom and what their coach/es instruct. Given with these, there has been disorder and no

unity taking place due to such disparities between coaches.

Matters within their sport are usually solved through discussions or open forums.

Their supervisor encourages that teams should meet up and converse their issues between

each other or how things are handled within their groups. Although this could resolve

some misapprehensions, these however, do not solve all of their inner conflicts and thus,

result to a diving groups which are not united. The divers also get most of their support

from their overseer since they obtain little or limited help from their national sports

association (NSA) or government. At present, they do not receive other sports benefits

besides their allowances. The supply for their vitamins is no longer being given although

Loberanes notes that the chairman for sports insists that these along with other additional

benefits will be returned by the following month.


Loberanes upholds that the current condition of the RMSC’s sports facilities and

equipment has been dilapidated. He adds that these have not been refurbished hence most

training grounds are decrepit and most apparatuses are rusty and not functioning. There

have been no changes in the Sports Medicine Association of the Philippines’ (SMAP)

training machinery as well. This particular venue is where most athletes come to do

weight training, and physical therapy among others. With regards to their diving facility,

Loberanes stresses that the sole modification done was paint the training grounds. Diving

springboards have not been renewed and the tartan (i.e. the mat to prevent divers from

slipping) used for diving platforms are mostly broken up into bits; these are just


combined together like puzzle pieces in order to cover up the whole platform. Besides

that, he asserts that they too train in China occasionally to prepare for certain prominent

international meets such as the SEA Games so as to also get accustomed to newer

springboards and an indoor diving location.

The diver also compares what has been mentioned earlier to the improvement in

some training facilities such as that of the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines

(GAP). He points out that most of their equipment are new and that unlike their venue,

the diving facility acquired no new apparatuses for years. When asked about the diving

facility in TRACE College located in Los Banos, Laguna, Loberanes explains that this

particular training ground has banned divers including the national team, to train and use

their state-of-the-art diving paraphernalia. This is for the reason that firstly, there had

been some problems regarding the actions of the previous batch of senior divers who

have also lived within the said venue; though this has not been further specified by

Loberanes. And secondly, there has been corruption between the overseers of the NSA

for aquatic sports, the Philippine Swimming Incorporated (PSI), and the Philippine Sports

Commission (PSC). In addition, the diver claims that the PSC has some unpaid debts for

TRACE College. Today, the TRACE College’s diving pool and indoor training grounds

is left abandoned and unused unlike that of the swimming pool area. The diving pool is

no longer filled with water and the nearly new diving springboards are left to rust.

Furthermore, Loberanes agrees that the availability of effective and well-

maintained sports facilities and equipment are factors towards athletic improvement. He

mentions that these boost the athlete’s motivation to train and in parallel, their coaches to

teach. In his perspective regarding the recent issue about the RMSC being planned to be


sold and converted into a mall, is that he and most national athletes living and training

within the said venue are terrified about this risk of losing their home. They have

responded collectively by means of putting up a petition in order to save the RMSC and

are in hopes of its declaration as a national heritage. Loberanes claims that national

athletes love the sports site regardless of its flaws. Moreover, an alternative sports facility

is being discussed to be set up in Clark, Pampanga as well as ongoing conversations

regarding the renovation of the Philippine Institute of Sports Multi-Purpose Arena

(PhilSports Arena), formerly known as the University of Life Theater and Recreational

Arena (ULTRA). Given these facts, Loberanes believes that athletes would feel miserable

even then and that they would lose motivation to train if ever they are to be relocated in a

different environment.

Other sources for their progression come from the assistance of the government.

The diver highlights that athletes need to consume healthy and the right amount of food.

They desire for nutritionists to assist them in having a well and balanced diet proper for

their training and future competitions. He emphasizes that if nutritionists are not available

or accessible, athletes do not get to take care of themselves in terms of food intake.

Loberanes continues as not all athletes can afford to buy the nutritious food that they

need, they resort to eating canned food and instant noodles (i.e. food they are not

supposed to consume and which is unhealthy). For that reason, these also add up to the

burden experienced by national divers besides having insufficient monthly allowances

especially for non-medalists.



In Loberanes’ viewpoint, the popular and fully supported sports in the Philippines

today are sports such as basketball, volleyball, swimming and taekwondo, among others.

He acknowledges that his sport, diving, is merely an option when it comes to help given

by the government, sports organizations or private entities. When provided with

assistance, diving is one of those sports last to be supplied with athletic needs or

requirements for the reason that it is not as well known as those previous sports

mentioned earlier. Loberanes claims that the sport was simply famous before during the

time of his seniors (i.e. the time of SEA Games medalists and Olympians’ Shiela Mae

Perez and Ryan Rexel Fabriga). The hype about their sport remained just for a short

period of time and at present, is one of the sports lesser recognized and supported

especially after the news breaking incident of his two collegues, John Fabriga and David

Pahoyo at the previous SEA Games; the infamous failed dives which has widely spread

all over social media.

When asked about the event, the fellow diver discusses how their failed dives

were not expected given that the two came prepared well and enough for the major meet.

He feels saddened for his colleagues as he was also there to support them as well as

witness the well-known zero marked dives. The diver too mentions that the particular

failed dive was Pahoyo’s favorite dive that is why he unanticipated the occurrence. In

addition, when asked about an article regarding the incident with Pahoyo stating that

another factor to their failure was the lack of sports facilities as they have practiced in

simply one training venue which was the RMSC, Loberanes reacts to this as he disagrees

with his teammate’s explanation. He opposes this as he compares the happening with the

achievements reached by their previous senior divers. They have trained in the same


venue and their equipment was as well the same old and not renewed apparatuses used by

his two fellow divers. Even with these limited equipment and training grounds, senior

divers’ Perez and Fabriga even made it into the 2008 Beijing Olympics as well as earned

medals in the SEA and Asian Games during their time.

Loberanes stresses that it is all about an athlete’s individuality and coach since the

two divers who have failed also trained twice a day every single day along with

supplementary practice sessions held in China. He furthers by asserting that if they were

not supported, they would not have been competing in the SEA Games. The diver adds

that he did not know about their situation afterwards and that his colleagues just shook

off the incident, laughing at themselves.

In terms of the needed assistance for the sport of diving, Loberanes insists that

there is simply little and it is very rare for them to receive help unlike other sports’ types

of support for their athletes and their sport in general. He adds that besides this, there

have been problems in terms of leadership within the sport of diving such as in passing of

requirements or papers (e.g. line-ups and athlete’s individual accomplishments). Given

this, divers who have performed better than their other colleagues are at times not placed

in their deserved ranks and are thus, left with obtaining little allowances and are not

joined in other major diving meets. There has also been a bias occurring in terms of

coach’s family members being placed in the line-up instead of the better performing

diver.

Furthermore, setbacks resulting from coaches and supervisor leadership have led

to divers to join international competitions without any allowances from the government.


He states that they often use their own expenses when competing abroad and that they

these funds from their overseer. Loberanes highlights that often, they are offered with

many international competitions. It is just that there have been difficulties acquiring the

budget they need. The government and sporting organizations handling aquatic sports

such as diving, therefore, are not able to supply their necessities especially regarding

invitational meets resulting to either divers being unprepared or worse, missing these

opportunities presented to them wherein they may also get the competition exposure they

need. Moreover, besides to the said needed support by divers, the diver furthers that they

as well require media support. He notes that all sports and every athlete need and should

have such options in order for the Filipino audience to become more aware of certain

unknown sports such as diving which is often misunderstood as simply swimming.

Loberanes also upholds that there will be no bias in terms of support given to

athletes or their sport if papers and other requirements are properly and legitimately

submitted with the right set of athletes listed and not just pass these with athletes listed

without any concrete reason or proof of their accomplishment. He states that effort in

every diver and coach is needed in order to lessen the biases happening in their field of

sport. The diver also confirms that there have been biases in terms of support when one is

a medalist, so there is at all times a need to prove oneself. Accordingly, athletes should

have the privilege to have and join as many meets as possible in order to present

themselves, their capabilities to acquire medals, get accustomed to competitions abroad,

and represent their sports as a whole. With no assistance for them to participate in both

minor and major competitions locally and especially internationally, athletes are not

given the right amount of opportunities to demonstrate themselves in the world stage of


diving and hence, lessen chances of them even being sponsored or obtaining more help

from interested sponsors.

With regards to Philippine sports personalities giving boost to their sports and

their sector overall, the national athlete agrees as well that they inspire many athletes to

continue training for their sports. Loberanes elucidates that gets stimulated to train further

because of his coach, Cesiel Domenios, who was also previously a national athlete and

hence, his senior. Because of his coach, he got to meet her other colleagues during her

time such as Olympians Perez and Fabriga. At present, he mentions that he too gets to

train and compete in synchronization with Fabriga who he claims as his brother and one

of his idols. Fabriga gives him encouragement and confidence to do better dives and

improve his skills.

Motivation

Loberanes mentions that he gets motivated to train further and pursue the sport of

diving because of his coach’s teaching and determination to excel and prove himself to

the country. He desires to accomplish and win something for the Philippines to uplift the

statues of diving today. The diver aims to qualify, participate and win medals in various

prestigious competitions like the SEA Games, Asian Games, World Championships and

optimistically, up until the next Olympic Games. He adds that if ever he is not able to

reach the highest sporting competition (i.e. Olympics), he aspires to give something

prominent for the country and be able to establish his talent and capabilities in the sport

of diving in the Philippines. Furthermore, Loberanes highlights that athletes, such as

divers like them, should have more competition exposures and opportunities abroad so as


for them to know where they currently stand in terms of degree of difficulty in skills and

level in diving in general. More competitions, he states, that athletes get more motivated

to train and improve themselves in order to beat their own personal bests as well as their

opponents who may or may not be one of the best in the world.


Loberanes finds that there is a relationship between sports and the development of

the Philippines. This is by means of the peace brought by all sports and the unity it brings

to all countries. Athletic performance shown in the world stage reflects the growth of the

country they represent. In addition, sports on the whole, attract all kinds of sports

participants, active or not.

The diver further explains that concerns needed to be prioritized within their sport

are the needs he stated earlier—sports nutritionists, effective coaching and leadership,

available and well-maintained facilities and equipment, competition and media exposure,

among others. The government and overseers of sports organizations especially that

handling diving, must address to these matters and be able to supply their necessities

evenly. Loberanes proposes as well that the catalysts for change in terms of the current

sports system are both the athletes and sports administrators. There has to be a healthy

and good relationship between the two so as to bring more cooperation and

understanding; and thus, also produce stronger athletes with more potential in winning

medals and reaching optimum performances. He stated that their sports heads should be

aware and be proud of every athlete’s skills or talent. They must never be ashamed of

them especially when they make crucial mistakes presented in whole realm of sports (e.g.


failed dives of Pahoyo and Fabriga during the SEA Games). Having no trust and

confidence for athletes may diminish their motivation particularly if there are athletes

without strong minds and hearts.

Finally, Loberanes suggests that the government and various sports organizations

must hear the voices of every athlete so as to address the current issues in Philippine

sports. He emphasizes that they have to realize that they also have rights and their voices

to speak up regarding their personal needs and their particular sports. Overseers should be

aware regarding their current state and hear out each of their concerns in order to improve

their sector and for their growth to be continuous and develop in line with the whole

progression of the country overall.

Case study on Cristina Onofre

Brief Background

Cristina Onofre is currently a member of the Philippines’ Women’s Artistic

Gymnastics (WAG) team. She discovered the sport of gymnastics while she was an

elementary student in a public school and started her sports career at the age of 9 through

competing in local competitions such as the Manila Meet. She lives within the city of

Manila and is also one of the many national athletes residing and training in the Rizal

Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC). 12 years into her career, she has been working hard

in hopes of providing medals from prestigious competitions for the country. In addition,

she currently trains in the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP) training

center located within the RMSC.



In Onofre’s point of view, the current state of Philippine sports has, at all times,

been disorganized because of all the politicking occurring and internal conflicts within

sports organizations, the government, and their supervisors. She illustrates this through

her frustration regarding the messy state of the GAP especially that the Southeast Asian

Games (SEA Games) is a few months away. There have been disagreements concerning

the current line-up of national athletes in gymnastics as there have also been doubts about

their performances. Onofre maintains that they disbelieve that most of the gymnasts

could handle the upcoming major competition. In addition, she explains that their

National Sports Association (NSA) has resorted to recruiting Filipino-Americans (Fil-

Am) to widen options on who to place in the future list of representatives. The gymnast

upholds that in her standpoint, another problem within their sport is the favouritism by

coaches particularly on these new contenders. She admits to some faults as an athlete

although these are not specified. She too expresses that most of them feel pressured and

anxious about their recent progression as each of them wants to make it into the cut.

In order to solve arguments within their sport, Onofre states that athletes are

encouraged to confront their coaches whenever they have concerns and seek for their

advice on what to do afterwards. This is for the reason that coaches and athletes need to

constantly communicate and be able to open up with each other to avoid being

uncomfortable and to reciprocate both trust and confidence. They also get help from

positive people in their lives (i.e. their friends and family) and the gymnast points out that

their secretary general (i.e. who she calls as tita Betina) is one of their primary source of

support; their supervisor who often attends to their needs.


Allowances vary based on whether national athletes have obtained medals from

various local and international competitions or not. Onofre asserts that initially, her

monthly earnings from being a national athlete and a medalist from the previous SEA

Games was Php 25,000. Upon competing in the recent Philippine National Games

(PNG), she ranked 4th

and was moved back to class C. This particular classification has

lowered her stipend to Php 15,000. She adds that soon after they had another evaluation

wherein she placed second overall. Given this higher rank and being able to display her

improvement has not increased her allowance since the PNG. Even if other coaches have

endorsed her case, her monthly earnings remains the same (i.e. Php 15,000). Onofre

expresses her disappointment to sports overseers as she notes that,”ang dali lang nila

magtanggal pero ang hirap nila magbalik, and elucidates that one competition is enough

to pull down an athlete’s standing for a long period of time even if he/she has performed

better in a more prestigious meet.

Furthermore, the gymnast explains the mechanics on the provision of monthly

allowances to national athletes who have medalled: Php 43,000 for gold medalists, Php

33,000 for silver, and Php 28,000 for bronze. She adds that these have increased recently.

In relation to this, all national athletes have to maintain and present medal-winning

performances every meet so as to sustain their current stipend and increase their chances

of being included in their sports’ respective line-ups. On the other hand and with regards

to other sporting benefits that they receive, Onofre states that their new chairman plans

on establishing a canteen for all national athletes wherein food is served for them without

it being lessened from their allowances. This project, also to be provided for by the

Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), is said to be finished after vacation (i.e. the Holy


Week) and is currently on the works. Its construction has been on hold for a while due to

the reason that there have been arrangements of the RMSC being sold and thus,

permission to continue building the venue is in a state of uncertainty.


To further discuss what has been mentioned earlier concerning the risk of the

RMSC being sold and to be reformed into a shopping mall, Onofre agrees that athletes

like her would not agree to this arrangement and would not let anything happen to their

beloved sporting ground. The gymnast emphasizes that what the RMSC needs is a

renovation and renewing most of the facilities and their equipment. Because of this issue,

she adds that the city mayor, Joseph Erap Estrada, does not give much attention and

priority to national athletes residing and training in the said facility. She along with other

colleagues, consider the RMSC as their home and territory as they have spent most of

their lives (i.e. half of it) in the venue and have created majority of their memories there.

On the contrary, Onofre discusses that she is satisfied with what is provided for

the GAP regardless of other sports facilities within the RMSC remaining the same and

mostly dilapidated. She asserts that they have been recently supplied with the specific

apparatuses they should have for training. The gymnast claims that most equipment are

new however, they also experience difficulties in using these as there are times that their

venue gets overcrowded and thus, result to delays in practicing. She too insists that most

of them experience difficulties in adjusting in terms of practicing in different kinds of

gymnastics apparatuses especially when training or competing abroad since these may be

unlike theirs and that other countries as well have other types of weather changes.


In relation to sports facilities and equipment being factors towards athletic

improvement, Onofre stresses that what they also need are sports psychologists. She

considers sports, like any other professional athlete, as a mental game (i.e. said to be 90%

overall). The gymnast upholds its importance explaining that if athletes have a strong

mind, they could conquer any physical pain they are feeling and this could them execute

the things that they need to do without hesitation and worries. She endorses as this

eliminate negativity and replace doubts with positivity. Onofre points out that this kind of

sporting requirement should also not be provided for the reason that there is an upcoming

competition. National athletes must be initially offered with such services to supply them

with proper training for their mindset as well since sports is not simply or mainly

physical.


In Onofre’s perspective, she finds that particular sports such as boxing, basketball,

and soccer are among those which are popular and are fully supported in the Philippines’

sporting realm. She believes that her sport of gymnastics is among those which that are

unpopular today and thinks that it will soon be recognized by the Filipino public. The

gymnast patiently waits for its enrichment as they have representatives who are currently

excelling and providing medals from major competitions in the said field of sport. She

mentions and commends fellow athletes like Yulo and Rayland from the Men’s Artistic

Gymnastics (MAG) team for their superb skills and supposes that they are the ones who

can uplift their sport in the country. Onofre claims that gymnastics is a well-known sport

in the world, however unlike most countries, the Philippines do not recognize it that

much.


The gymnast further highlights that little or no support in terms of competition

exposure is provided for their team. She compares their situation to their competitors as

they have acquired a great deal of aggressiveness and confidence when performing in

international meets. Experiences competing in various competitions abroad have given

them a boost in executing optimum performances as compared to Filipino gymnasts with

little competition exposure and thus, generally ending up being intimidated. Onofre notes

that Filipino gymnasts like her get to compete abroad for simply a few times a year due to

reasons of having problems regarding their budget. She emphasizes that this has often

been the cause of their limited amount of experience performing in an international

setting. The gymnast adds that often, they get invited to various gymnastics meets abroad

but refuse to participate in them as they cannot afford to bring all lined-up national

athletes there. If they choose to compete in these invitational meets, their NSA manages

the team by means of holding an evaluation in order to select a few members from both

WAG and MAG teams. Accordingly, winners (i.e. likely to be the top three) from this

competition ranking who have shown consistent and strong performances are those who

are picked to join the particular invitational meet.

Onofre agrees as well to the fact that Filipino sports personalities enhance the

popularity of sports in the Philippines. She endorses however, that only some sports get

to be presented to the Filipino audience and suggests that it will be better if all sports are

offered chances of displaying their discipline as well as its athletes in different media

platforms. The gymnast adds that the media exposure of every sport could supply the

public with knowledge about each of them and thus, learn about those of which that are

not really known in the country. She continues as demonstrating their talent and sport


nationwide is vital so as to also make the Filipino community aware of everything that

comprises the realm of sports in the Philippines. These could attract more athletic

aspirants and sports enthusiasts in not just the said mainstream sports of basketball,

boxing, and soccer, among others generally televised. More support from the public is

essential to every athlete as well since their encouragement stimulates them to work

harder in order to make a name for themselves and their sport especially when they

represent the nation in international meets.

In the field of gymnastics, Onofre claims that the sole media coverage they obtain

is through televising their SEA Games competition. Other than that, barely any gymnast

and their training or meets gets to be exhibited to the public except those male gymnasts

she mentioned who have been consistent and excelling in the sport, Yulo and Rayland.

Therefore, medalists receive the most credit and with hardly any rising stars other than

the two, gymnastics and other sports who can relate to this situation often remain

unrecognized. In addition, she expresses how offended she feels for her sport as those

other sports that are regularly televised are and stay as well as the well-known sports in

the Philippines (e.g. basketball’s PBA games and volleyball’s UAAP matches).

Motivation

When asked about her sources of inspiration to continue pursue the sport of

gymnastics, Onofre mentions her family, God, her goal (i.e. her determination to achieve

each of them), the people who support and believe in her, among others. She includes

Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast in the world today, to her list as well as other

national athletes who have uplifted their name and sports overall in the Philippines. These


are among those that encourage her to keep on training the sport she loves despite feeling

down occasionally due to her several physical injuries. The gymnast adds that she is

driven to not give up as quitting means that she refuses to reach and try to accomplish her

goals. As she has also spent half of her life in gymnastics, Onofre desires to push herself

further in hopes of providing more medals for the country from various major and

prestigious competitions regardless of having hurt her body numerous times.

In relation to other factors that motivate athletes to carry on practicing their sport,

the gymnast stresses that positive people (i.e. supporters or believers) and connection

between the coaches and their athletes is imperative to the overall progression of sports

and its participants. Additionally, a good and optimistic relationship between the two

promotes cooperation for athletic improvement with regards to their general

performance—through the course of learning, empowering, and encouraging, among

others. A solid bond among all sports participants thus, also mean that everyone is able to

relate and open up with each other. On the contrary, conflicted relationships invite

discomfort and both would feel uneasy to teach, learn, and practice because of particular

misunderstandings. As a result, this type of connection could as well hinder athletic

improvement and cause poor performances.


Onofre states and admits that she is unsure how sports and the overall

development of the Philippines relate to each other. The gymnast simply mentions that

there has at all times been a lack in a variety of support for the sports sector and hence,

also does not identify how having such difficulties could improve the general growth of


the nation. She adds that on the subject of specific concerns in sports that needs to be

prioritized and given more attention to are aspects like having sports or physical

therapists for each discipline. Onofre illustrates that in her previous SEA Games

experience, they had none compared to other participating countries. Because physical

therapists are insufficient, they can only serve for a selected number of sports. For this

reason, Philippine sports like theirs are left to self-medicate or physically treat

themselves. The gymnast as well admits that she felt envious upon seeing other

international athletes having treated by their own therapists.

Given with such instance about how the Philippines lack support for particular

necessities of every sport, Onofre upholds that assistance comes after athletes win medals

and have presented concrete results. She adds that the problem is how athletes could earn

medals and become triumphant in their field on the course of their needs not being

supplied to begin with. With no support such as in terms of their overall budget, athletes

cannot compete and represent the country as much as they would like. Refusing offered

opportunities like receiving invitations to join various meets abroad because of this

constant limited budget hinders athletes to produce the medals and accomplishments that

the government and their administrators are asking of them. Requiring actual results from

them before presenting their assistance regarding athletic necessities in all aspects of

sports is therefore, impossible and has to be the other way around. With little chances of

proving themselves to their overseers, athletes either improve slowly or remain in a

plateau progression.

Onofre also mentions that the catalysts that could modify the current system in

Philippine sports are both the government and everyone in the sports realm; their


collective effort and action for the sports sector. She states that each has to be committed

to each other and their own respective duties. The gymnast compares this sports and

athletic progression to a pyramid wherein it comprises all sports participants—the

athletes, coaches, administrators (i.e. sports organizations such as the PSC and the POC),

and the government. Every single one of these have their own obligations to fulfil if the

nation seeks to improve the area of sports in the Philippines.

Finally, the suggestions that the gymnast mentions in order to address the issues

in Philippine sports and its current state as well as empower athletes in parallel with

Philippine development, are to focus on them more and provide them with ample support

in all aspects. She reiterates that no medal can be produced without supplying their

individual and specific necessities. These are sufficient and efficient sports facilities and

equipment, effective leadership by the administrators and coaches, competition and

media exposure, sports therapists, among others. The gymnast adds that overseers should

prioritize the welfare of the athletes instead of their own. Eliminating corruption

occurring within sports organizations as well is crucial as these affect the wellbeing of the

athletes and overall sports sector. Each member of the sports industry should be

committed and must carry out their respective duties in order to be of service to

Philippine sports in general.

Discussion and Analysis of Data

The national athletes (i.e. key informants) interviewed have been in the Philippine

sports industry for most of their lives and have represented the country in various local


and international competitions. The study considers these respondents as representatives

of their sports, particularly for weightlifting, diving, and gymnastics. It is also important

to note that the research limits itself to few of the unrecognized sports in the Philippines;

one that has been considered by athletes themselves as unpopular today even if they had

their shining moments due to some well-performing athletes. Other sports that participate

in the Winter Olympics, Paralympics and those outside are as well not examined.

Based on the given data, Philippine sports and its athletes may be considered as a

marginalized sector. They are so in a way that basically, their needs are not met and

supplied for by the government and the administrating sports institutions. National

athletes work hard for years and aim to win for the country despite the situations they

face in this industry. It is illustrated that first, in terms of leadership, coaches of teams,

NSAs, as well as the government have been experiencing internal conflicts and remain

uncooperative to the point that athletes get affected by their actions. Politicking is, as

well, included in their issues given that most want to protect their positions, money, and

all the other perks they receive especially when an athlete’s triumph gives them more

credit. The interviewees justifies that their overseers put more priority and attention to

themselves rather than the welfare of the athletes—those who make sports exist in the

Philippines in the first place.

Second, sports facilities and equipment are part of athletes’ concerns in terms of

motivation and performance. A lot of national athletes especially those which are lesser-

known and thus, lack support from their NSAs or the government make do with what

they are provided with—dilapidated and a limited number of sports facilities (e.g. for

physical therapy, sports nutrition, weight training rooms, among others), and outdated


equipment (i.e. old, rusty, and not functioning properly). They also share these and train

with them on a regular basis. The government gives attention and initiative to renew and

renovate these simply when the country gets to host major sporting competitions and

when international athletes visit to compete. With a limited number of effective training

centers and apparatuses, sports do not as well fully reach athletic aspirants living in the

rural areas. In addition, athletes from provincial areas crawl their way up to excel in their

field of sport and manage to practice at makeshift gyms and with improvised equipment.

Third, in terms of allowances and sporting benefits, this setback is basically the

matter of government budget support for all teams. There are times wherein the

administrators fail to grant athletes’ allowance on time. Because of budget problems,

athletes do not often get a chance to compete in invitational and other major meets abroad

which could enhance their competition exposure, as well as their experience in the said

setting for furthering their level of performance. In addition, only a selected number of

athletes from national team line-ups are able to join these competitions since the funds

provided for them cannot support all members. Conflicts arise in national teams for this

reason as only a few get to participate. Most importantly, given that athletes do not get to

compete in many competitions per year, they lose chances of getting to prove themselves

and their sport as well as bring home the medals that their overseers constantly require

them of producing. Lesser competition exposure for particular sports also adds to the

factor that these remain unrecognized to the public and thus, does not increase supporters

for these sports. It is important to note that athletes always have to present medals, results

or accomplishments in order for them to finally gain the various needs their sport and life

requires.


Fourth, in relation to the previous concern mentioned earlier is the popularization

of sports in the country. There have often been differences through the support the

government, NSA, or private entities (i.e. if the sport has one as a sponsor) give to

particular sports and athletes. Popular sports, those of which that are usually televised or

presented in various media platforms, get the most praise and assistance in order to

further uplift their sports. Sports like basketball and volleyball are examples by getting to

display their talent as well as some knowledge about their sport to the Filipino audience

through means of televising their games (e.g. UAAP and PBA matches). Because of this,

they attract more viewers and hence, more sports fans, enthusiasts, and even sponsors. As

a result, they are able to gain additional support to also help maintain the status of these

sports and their athletes. Alongside this, sponsors who are usually the private entities gain

profit from the further popularization of these sports. This is proven to be one of their

purposes for sponsoring these athletes given that it will be a win-win situation for both

sponsors and athletes.

Lastly, the relationship of sports and Philippine development overall is that sports

get to unite individuals—athletes, sports participants, fans, and enthusiasts, among others.

Not only does it teach unity among people but is also able to produce productive and

sensible persons who could provide for furthering the growth of the country. Athletes’

performances as well mirror the state of sports within the Philippines and thus, reflect

how things are within the nation in terms of development. This is displayed by the way

the country’s athletes have improved or regressed within their respective sports as shown

in major competitions. For this reason, sports must be further considered as part of the

Philippine sector. It is apparent that this realm and its national athletes are ignored or


neglected over other irrelevant issues within the state except only when prestigious

competitions such as the Olympics take place.


Chapter 3

Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendations

Summary of Findings and Conclusion

Based on the data gathered through key informant interviews and case studies that

dealt with major topics regarding Philippine sports, its development, as well as athlete

empowerment through motivation, it is apparent that the overall current state of sports in

the country is not progressing and continues to regress by means of various factors under

this sector. A chief contributing issue defining it is how the overseers of the nation’s

sports and athletes are disorganized, uncooperative, and corrupt. There is a perceptible

problem in terms of leadership and management through politicking. This is validated by

the national athletes as they expressed their disappointments with how they have been

working over their years within the field. Position defines their way of leading or

managing sports and athletes wherein power, fame, and money (i.e. also credit) is vital to

their existence in the sporting world. Because of this, national athletes and their

respective sports gets affected as they continue to suffer and crawl their way in hopes of

achieving success—bringing home medals and other major achievements for the country.

The state of sports today in the Philippines may be reflected through athletic

performances and how much they participate in competitions both locally and

internationally. Their performances are therefore rooted from their motivation in training

for their sports with which the research has dealt upon. These specific aspects in sports

that affects athletic motivation and hence, their performances are their sports facilities


and equipment, as well as their popularization in the country via competition and media

exposure. These also boil down to the support they get for each of these components.

First, in terms of sports facilities and equipment, it is confirmed that these remain

insufficient and outdated. For this reason, national athletes continue to make do of what is

available to them (e.g. RMSC and its services). It can also be concluded that because of

its condition, sports remains to be exclusive and does not, in reality, get to fully reach

other athletic aspirants especially those living in the rural areas. Athletes like Hidilyn

Diaz made their way to the Philippine sporting world out of pure sacrifice and hard work

as they have managed to rise amidst the essential resources they lack. With better

apparatuses acquired as such athletes have entered the national team and thus, their

training grounds (i.e. the RMSC), they are able to enhance their skills more even if these

machinery remain not renewed or renovated. Services from their facilities such as

physical therapy, sports nutrition, among others, are agreed to be as well inadequate to all

athletes in every team.

Given these, athletic motivation and performance is affected in different ways.

And it may be said that: (1) athletes get more stimulated and confident training in better

and in an abundant number of sports facilities and training grounds; (2) in contrast,

athletes encourage themselves to carry on training through their personal goals (i.e.

earning medals for the country and becoming representatives for the Olympics, among

others) and this aspect in sports does not affect them that much as long as they have

strong minds, heart, and enough passion; and (3) it is factual that they also can enhance

their performance, skills, and discover more techniques with these venues and

apparatuses supporting their overall training.


Secondly, popularization of sports plays a big role towards supporting various

sports and their athletes. Provision of competitions for teams give more experience for

athletes in major sports settings and thus, opportunities of improving and demonstrating

their worth as a representative of the country. More competitions also give chances for

athletes to acquire awards and medals with which are required of them by their

administrators (i.e. government, sports organizations, and NSAs). On the other hand,

media exposure supplies the public with awareness and knowledge about different types

of sports and their current representatives, as well as how their respective sports are

played. More exposure for every sports boosts their morale and hence, their motivation to

play their game for the love of their country and their sports. This also enables various

sports to extend its reach to different parts of the nation and make possible discovering

new talents who may eventually become the next Hidilyn Diaz.

Given these, however, not all are given such chances to shine in the realm of

sports in the Philippines. Support comes into the picture as it is not initially and easily

given to athletes. This is agreed and confirmed to come after if they win a medal from a

major competition for the country. Another is when teams from sports, especially

televised regularly to the public, attract investors to further give assistance resulting to

more profit for them and more support in different aspects for these teams or sports,

giving both sides benefits (i.e. a win-win situation). Most importantly, proof is always

needed—results, accomplishments, medals, and the like—before offers come. These

evidences as well define what sports and which particular athletes are to be given support

by their supervisors.


Alongside these matters, lack of budget has always been the problem in terms of

supporting sports and their athletes. Insufficient funds mean lesser opportunities to join

competitions abroad, and therefore, smaller chances of acquiring medals and other

achievements for the country. Consequently, without medal-winning performances,

athletes do not receive the help they need to further enhance their abilities and develop

their sports. Then again, popularization of sports comes into the picture as the more

popular (i.e. generally shown to the Filipino audience) the sports is, the more support and

other sports benefits they are able to receive. On the contrary, the lesser-known sports

(i.e. not usually displayed to the public or are not given chances of presenting their sport

as much) remain hopeful that someday, they will be noticed for their talent and optimal

skills. Given these, it may be concluded that there is an evident inequality in terms of

support for particular sports.

Lastly, the said topics about sports overall also define athlete motivation towards

optimum performances. Given the current state of Philippine sports and all its concerns, it

can be concluded that there is none or less priority and attention given to this sector. It is

left ignored or neglected by the government provided that their condition remains to be

not progressing—in terms of support in sports facilities and equipment, popularization

through competition and media, and other sporting benefits required in every field.

Administrators of sports prioritize more of themselves rather than their athletes who in

fact, create sports in general. Even an Olympic medal cannot eliminate or lessen

difficulties experienced in sports. Thus, politics and other conflicts in sports

organizations have to be set aside and put into its proper place as well in order to improve


and administer effective leadership and management in sports. In addition, funding is

needed to provide for the necessities of every athlete of every sport in the country.

Recommendations

The study would like to recommend some specific measures so as to help recover

and improve the overall state of sports in the Philippines and hence, enhance athletic

motivation and their performances. As a Development Studies major, it is important to

note alongside some suggestions for the improvement of sports, alternative measures that

may be done in order to address the current issues revolving around this topic. One would

be to provide a grassroots program for sports. The idea of having grassroots is essential to

expanding the realm of sports in the country and giving assistance especially to those far

from actual training grounds, and other services needed in order to develop athletic

abilities. This also enables discovery and recruitment of potential gold medal winning

athletes in the future. All they need are the proper and sufficient resources for the

respective sports they wish to pursue.

Another suggestion to the enhancement of sports and empowerment of athletes is

providing sports institutions or academies in every part of the nation, urban and rural.

This is particularly what the country lacks and therefore, defines that sports is not a major

aspect to its growth. In addition, commercial spots are more than enough, and it is time

that there be specific venues to serve the sports sector. More facilities providing sports

for communities would increase the extent of sports in the Philippines. This will attract

especially athletic aspirants as these would be more accessible to them and thus,


encourage them to chase their dreams as athletes. In accordance with this, there should be

more sports educators available to teach aspiring athletes and in order to spread

awareness and knowledge of different sports.

Additionally, the country could follow some models from other nations excelling

in the field of sports. An example is China’s provision of schools specializing in sports

wherein the Philippines should in time, follow. The country needs such sports universities

in order to open opportunities for especially student-athletes to focus on their particular

sports disciplines. Among the known sports universities in China are the Beijing Sport

University, Wuhan Sports University, Shanghai University of Sport, among others. There

are too many to mention and these simply reflect how much sports is valued in China as

well as how they develop their top-performing athletes. On the other hand, the

Philippines has none. Some of the top universities do offer sports varsity programs but

these do not cover half of the sports played by Filipinos. Only those which are common

and accessible to student-athletes such as, basketball, swimming, and the like, are given

more attention by colleges.

Another alternative model which the Philippines could pursue is providing

enough funds to establish national training centers and facilities for every sport around

the nation—rural and urban. USA’s gymnastics team trains in a facility called the Karolyi

Ranch built by two of the most legendary gymnastics coaches in the world, Bela and

Marta Karolyi. This serves as their Olympic training site as well as ones for

developmental gymnasts on or below the junior level. Here, the Karolyi’s cater special

techniques in order to mould their gymnasts into perfect shape and confident enough to

compete in various international competitions. These gymnasts are also said to stay


within the location for two weeks so as to also get accustomed to their teammates and

thus, establishing team work, responsibility, and discipline, together. In addition, artistic,

rhythmic, and trampoline gymnastics events each have their own separate gym as well as

equipment. Dance rooms and medical rooms are also included. It basically has

everything.

Alternatively, the Philippines could set plans similar to this kind of arrangement

in order to provide focus and attention to its athletes per sport. It needs to generate

coaches teaching on a national level as well as on the preparatory, developmental, novice,

and intermediate levels. The more coaches for each stage of athletic performance, the

better, since this will organize how training programs and athletic progressions go about

per field. Another is that the government and sports administrators should as well provide

venues for different events within a sport like the one mentioned earlier, the sport of

gymnastics. In the GAP training grounds (i.e. within the RMSC), gymnasts get cramped

up as they train together. All are in one venue—artistic gymnasts, rhythmic gymnasts,

aerobics, among others. There are possible occurrences of delays in training due to other

athletes using the same apparatus. Although provided with only this venue, a positive

thing that has happened recently is their upgrade in equipment. These upgrades need to

be applied for not just gymnastics but for every sport. It is essential that athletes be

treated equally in terms of these kinds of support so as to also unite these NSAs into one

cooperative and strengthened sports sector.

The research also recommends more opportunities of exposure for all sports and

their athletes. In this way, every sport gets to be recognized and learned more about by

the Filipino audience. It will broaden their knowledge about sports played by Filipino


athletes and enable them to be more open to other lesser-known sports (e.g. diving which

is often misunderstood as merely swimming) besides mainstream sports which are often

televised such as basketball and volleyball. Providing more of this to all sports will also

show what their current condition is and what they currently need to enhance their

training and performance. By giving this to Philippine sports and athletes, more attention

and prioritization for them is as well possible.

Lastly, it is recommended that there be proper, effective, and just sports

leadership and management by administrators. Politics should be set aside and in its

appropriate place so as not to affect the welfare of athletes. Internal conflicts must be

settled and particular obligations must be complied and adhered to. With cooperation,

unity and lessened or eliminated disagreements, a well and coordinated sports

organization is likely. Other than this, more can be done for the athletes given that they

also should fully focus and prioritize them. In accordance, funding is as well needed for

sports so as to provide them with every requirement or necessity towards achieving top-

notched athletic performances. More of this kind of support should bring further

opportunities for athletes to join both major and minor competitions with everyone from

their team’s line-up present since they are able to cover for all of their expenses (i.e.

living, training, and competition expenses). Consequently, there are additional chances of

them obatining medals and accomplishments for their sports, and especially the

Philippines.

With these measures, sports development and athlete empowerment is doable.

This sector must not and no longer be overlooked as athletes may also be considered

today as marginalized provided with what has been mentioned earlier. Every sweat, tear,


and even blood of each Filipino athlete is valuable as they are the ones who keep

Philippine sports existent in the first place. Their concerns need to be tended to and their

voices be heard. They are as well a priority of the nation and deserve the respect and

assistance they bring about for the country (i.e. in every competition they win and thus,

represent the Philippines).


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Appendices

Appendix 1: Interview Guide Questions

Introduction

1. Personal information: name, age, sport, occupation/sidelines, etc.

2. Brief background of your sports career, personal achievements and

competitions joined. (sports career story)

Current State of Philippine Sports

1. What can you say about the current state of Philippine sports? Has it

progressed or regressed? Explain answer.

2. What are the problems you are, had or have been currently facing as a

Filipino athlete and difficulties within your sport?

3. How do you remedy these problems and where or from whom do you find

support? Are there any specific sports officials or organization/s helping

you through these?

4. How much is your monthly/yearly allowance? Is it enough to supply your

living and training needs? Explain answer.

5. Do you have other sporting benefits and are you given additional

allowances when you participate and or win in a local or international

competition?


6. What are the usual sports facilities that you use? Are they adequate,

updated and well-maintained enough to satisfy your training needs?


7. Do you think that these are important factors towards an athlete’s

performance (in terms of improvement)? Explain answer.

8. What can you say about the latest issue on the RMSC renovation being

planned and how important is the RMSC to national athletes like you?

Popularization of Sports

1. What do you think are the most popular sports today and those which are

fully supported?

2. Is there enough support given to your sport (in terms of competition or

media exposure, allowances, sports facilities/equipment, etc.)? Explain

answer.

3. Do you think there is an occurring bias in relation to the government and

other sports institutions in supporting particular sports? Explain answer.

4. Do you have sponsors? If ever there is, what/who are they?

5. Do you think sports personalities increase his/her sports’ popularity in the

country? Explain answer.

6. Were you also able to get inspiration/s from them in pursuing your sport?

Why or why not and who are these sports personalities?

7. Are your competitions being televised or featured in other media

platforms?

8. Do you think there is a need for media to televise and feature other

sporting events/competitions? Explain answer.

9. How and why do you think is it important to televise or feature other

sporting events to the public?


Athlete motivation

1. What motivates you to continue training for your sport?

2. What do you think are the main factors of an athlete’s motivation to

pursue his/her sport?

Importance of Sports in Philippine Development

1. What do you think is the relationship between sports and Philippine

development as a whole?

2. What are some concerns which are needed to be looked more into and

prioritized in relation to sports development?

3. Who should be considered as the main “catalyst/s for change (athletes,

sports officials or government)?”

4. What should be done in order to address the current issues in Philippine

sports and its athletes today? (Your suggestions for Philippine sports

development and Filipino athlete empowerment)


Appendix 2: Endorsement Letter


College of Arts and Sciences


To whom it may concern:

The bearer of this letter, NATASSIA MARIE G. NALUS, with student no. 2012-61226 is

a student of the University of the Philippines Manila who is currently conducting her

thesis entitled “Sports Development and Athlete Empowerment in Contemporary

Philippines: A Study on the Current State of Philippine Sports and the Factors that

Influence the Motivation of National Athletes” for the degree program Bachelor of Arts in

Development Studies. With this, she would be needing to conduct an interview and case

study with rightful respondents (sports organizations, national coaches, veteran athletes

and national athletes) as part of her data gathering process.

She would be doing this research work in order to integrate the theories she learned in

this course in real life situations as well as to contribute to better understand the plight of

the Filipino people especially those of Philippine national athletes.

We would highly appreciate if you would extend to her any form of assistance and help

her obtain facts for her research paper.

Hope this matter will merit your favorable consideration. Thank you and more power!

Truly yours,

PROF. REGINALD S. VALLEJOS, MPA

Thesis Adviser

Development Studies Program


Appendix 3: KII Transcriptions

3.1. Hidilyn Diaz- Olympic medalist in Weightlifting

I: So ate, bigay naman po kayo ng ano...brief background sa sports career niyo po.

H: Sports career ba kwan?

I: Kung paano kayo nagsimula, ano yung naging achievements niyo...

H: Ah sa’n ba yung isa...Paanong nagsimula? Nagsimula ako sa weightlifting dahil

sa...by curiosity lang.

I: Curiosity lang.

H: Curiosity lang. Mhm...nakita ko mga pinsan ko na nagbubuhat tapos ipilipil lang yung

ginagamit nila..branches ng ipilipil so ayun...nakita ko parang masaya sila. Nung nakita

ko na masaya sila sabi ko pwede...kasi introvert ako nung bata ako so ayun gusto ko i-try.

Nung na-try ko, nagustuhan ko. Sabi ko parang...belong ako sa weightlifting.

I: Ano yung first competition niyo...kung ganun? Diba hindi siya dati masyado kilala sa...

H: Hindi naman talaga hanggang ngayon kilala ang weightlifting.

I: Kahit nung nanalo po kayo?

H: Mhm...ahh sa...nung nanalo ako, maraming gustong mag-weightlifting. Pero siguro

yun yung magiging advocacy ko. Nag-weightlifting ako...yun...curiosity then first

competition ko is Batang Pinoy sa Puerto Prinsesa. Gold ako kasi mag-isa lang ako.

I: Ohh hahaha okay.


H: Hahaha walang kalaban. Walang kalaban. Ayun...second competition ko silver ako.

May kalaban ako. Pero dahil silver ako sabi ko “hindi ako magpapatalo, kailangan gold

ako next time.”

I: Ahh. Ano...ilang taon ka na nun ate?

H: 11 years old.

I: Ahh okay. Halos same lang pala tayo age nag-start...

H: 2013...ah...2014? Uhm, napasok ako sa national team at the age of 13 years old. Dun

sa naging...ah, nag-compete sa Batang Pinoy...ahh, hindi. SEA Games 2005 dito diba...

I: Opo.

H: ...nagtraining sa China...

I: Sa China...hmm...saan pa po kayo nagttrain?

H: China talaga.

I: China lang...ohh.

H: 4 times sa China...

I: 4 times...every year po ‘yun?

H: Hindi. How I wish diba? Hahaha.

I: Hahaha.

H: ...uhm...ayun.


I: Ayon, so...tungkol naman sa current state ng Philippine sports, ano naman yung

masasabi niyo sa...ayun, current state ng Philippine sports? Nag-progress ba siya? Nag-

regress? Sa tingin niyo...?

H: Hahaha...uhm...PSC, ngayon, open sila sa pagbabago...record mo ‘ba ‘to?

I: Opo.

H: Ipapalabas mo ba ‘to on media?

I: Ahh hindi...gagawan ko lang po ng case studies haha.

H: Haha ahh okay...POC...alam mo kasi ‘pag mga traditional na paniniwala...alam mo

yung iniisip nila na yung itong taong ‘to, hihila sa akin...gusto nila puro credits kaya

ayun...ang Philippine sports hindi nagpoprogress dahil sa mga ganyang utak

talangka...hindi, hindi ko sinasabing ganun...kaya lang, kailangan baguhin eh. Yun

yung...siguro...sa future...tayong...diba tayong mga atleta, naging atleta...yan ang

magiging misyon natin sa buhay. Kasi hindi naman sila habang buhay dyan eh...

I: Haha ano yung masasabi mo bakit ano...yung...pagstay sa position ni sir Peping

Cojuanco...

H: Uhm...matalinong matalino siya kaya lang, yung pulitika, ilagay sa lugar. Dapat

ibigay...parati priority, athletes. Kasi wala ang sports kung walang atleta. Hindi

mabubuhay ang sports kung walang magpaparticipate. So, dapat bigyan nila ng priority

ang athlete hindi ang bulsa nila. Hindi ang self-interest nila.

I: True. Haha.


H: Haha bakit?

I: Wala lang haha nakaka-relate din ako.

H: Haha oo diba? Ganun parati eh. Kung mahal mo ang Pilipinas, mahal mo ang sports,

hinding hindi mo ganyanin eh, hindi mo ganyanin ang...ang mga atleta. Hindi ka

magbubulsa kung hindi ikaw mismo ang maglalabas ng pera...imamarket mo mismo ang

sports. Dahil lahat ng pag nandito...lahat sila...gahaman sa posisyon eh. Hindi nila iniisip

na, mamamatay din naman sila diba? Ba’t di sila tutulong sa kapwa?

I: At tyaka nanggagaling din diba minsan yung...kunwari, competition expenses galing sa

athlete din mismo?

H: Minsan, oo. Pero sa amin...hindi...hindi ako makakapag-gastos. Kasi syempre mahirap

lang naman din ako. So ayun...kailangan maghanap kami ng paraan. Ayun, ’pag manalo

ako, sabihin na...nito...”kami ang nagpa-kwan sayo!” ...pero...

I: Oo nga eh.

H: ...sino ang nagttraining mag-isa diba?

I: Mhm...naghihirap...

H: Ayokong magsalita pero...talagang frustrated ako. After winning sa silver...yung silver

medal ko...wala pa rin nangyayari. Ganun pa rin. Lahat sila nagkakagulo. Ano

ba...hahaha...hindi ko nasasagot yung tanong mo eh hahaha.

I: Hahaha okay lang po. Okay lang po haha.

H: Balik tayo dun sa ano...haha.


I: ...hahaha mag-kwento ka lang ate haha it’s okay.

H: ...talagang medyo...alam ni sir Jay yan...anong nangyayari...

I: ...anong naffeel...opo.

H: Frustrated ako...sa association sa sports...ayun.

I: Uh...ano pa po ba yung mga problems na nafeface niyo as a Filipino athlete and sa

sports niyo po...sa...sa weightlifting po mismo?

H: Ay..weightlifting?

I: ...may mga problema po ba kayo doon?

H: Dami naming problema doon. Ako as an athlete, ngayon, magtthree months na akong

walang allowance. Sabi ko, anong maffeel...ako, dapat privilege ang maffeel ko pero

hindi eh. Alam mo yung naffeel mo na parang na-left behind ka kahit nanalo ka na sa

Olympics. Tapos yung association namin watak-watak kasi nga gusto nila power, fame,

money...na...tapos wala naman silang ginagawa na para ma...alam mo yun...sa kapakanan

ng athlete. Yung mga ginagawa nila, naaapektuhan ang athletes so yung dream ng athlete,

parang na...sila ang naging hindrance para hindi mapatupad ang...ang...ang dream ng

athlete dahil sa mga self-interest nila...dahil sa ano lang ang gusto nila. Yun. Then walang

program. Yun...wala...wala talaga silang plans sa sports...

I: Sobrang kalat...

H: ...pati walang seminars...walang ganun...so ayun...hindi lang ako pwedeng aasa sa mga

mokong na ‘to. Hindi lang naman pwede magcocomplain lang ako, ‘di din pwede yung


ibabash ko lang din sila...Why not, ako mismo, gagawa ako ng changes. Gagawa ako ng

moves para sa mga gintong athlete. So ayun...iniisip ko kung papaano. Kaya medyo

nadedepress ako...kasi nagttraining ako, nag-aaral ako ta’s ayun...paano ‘to? Mag-isa lang

katawan ko...isa lang katawan ko so ayun...pero okay lang. Kaya naman.

I: Paano niyo po nasosolve yung mga...mga problems po? If ever, saan po kayo

nakakahanap ng support? Kanino?

H: Kay sir Jay.

I: Sir Jay.

H: Jay Futalan, sa mga taong naniniwala sa akin...kasi ayun ang kailangan ko eh. When

down ako, talagang...ayoko na mag-training pero may mga taong nagsasabi na kailangan,

isipin mo yung long term mo...yun...iniisip ko lang...*naluluha*

I: Uhm...may mga...so mostly ano po...from...*Hidilyn starts to cry a little* ...aww sorry

hahahuhu sorry po...

H: Okay lang ako haha...mga kaibigan ko talaga...

I: Mostly from family o kaibigan talaga. Wala man lang sports officials or galing sa

government na tumutulong?

H: Sir Jay haha.

I: Sir Jay...

H: Sa sports official, PSC, ngayon supportive kasi diba ngayon may war between POC

and PSC? So PSC is so supportive. POC...I don’t know. Kasi, before Olympics,


namulitika sila. So ayoko nang mag-trust sa kanila. Whenever I have problem, hindi ko

shinishare na sa kanila kasi binabaliktad nila...sinasabihan nila...”wala yan disiplina!”

“hindi yan mananalo!” ganun...kasi...

I: Grabe...

H: Oo...

I: Sobrang sinisiraan nila kayo...

H: Sinisiraan nila ang athlete na which is hindi dapat. Alam naman nila ano ang

kailangan ng athlete.

I: Bale...uhm...okay lang po ba kung tanungin ko ano yung monthly or...uhm...yearly

allowance niyo? Kahit approximate...

H: Monthly ko, Php 43,000. Pero syempre nandun pagkain, renta ko sa dorm...tapos

syempre as an...mahirap lang ako...magpapadala pa ako galing sa amin...

I: Hindi po siya enough...yung allowance...?

H: Hindi. Para sa akin. Kasi iba na yung demand ng buhay ko. Hindi kagaya ng dati na

ganito lang...ta’s pagkain ko pa lang, Php 21,000...yun.

I: May iba pa po ba kayong sports benefits? Lalo na nung nanalo kayo...

H: Siguro...yung sinasabi nila, yung fame...inaadmire ako ng mga bata, iniinspire ako ng

mga bata...siguro yun lang. Pero hindi ko naman naiisip na yung fame...hindi eh...kasi as

an athlete, na-reach ko lang yung goal ko. Pero it doesn’t mean na magsstop ako doon. So


I have to train again, I have to...ito...magssuffer ulit...intindihin ang mga taong

naniraan...gustong siraan ako...*teary eyed*

I: Kaya mo yan ate huhu...pero may mga ano din ba kayo...may mga additional

allowance...bale kung sumali kayo ng competition abroad or kahit dito...?

H: Ay wala. Ganun pa rin. Ang naging maganda lang ngayon, may mga endorser...may

endorsement ako. May mga...naging ambassador ako ng Under Armour...

I: Wow...

H: ...naging PSA Awards...uh, athlete of the year ako. So, yun naging... mga natanggap

ko after winning Olympics so sabi nga nila din, ako yung boses ng mga atleta ngayon

pero ayoko din naman gamitin yun para manira ng sports ko...

I: Syempre...

H: ...sabihin ko, “ganito yung sports namin,” so ayoko ng ganun kasi mahal ko yung

sports ko. Kaya sabi ko...tinanong ko kung sa media...ilalabas ba ‘to sa media kasi ayoko

masiraan ang sports ko...

I: Opo..ay hindi naman po.

H: ...ayun. Medyo nasasaktan lang ako para sa sports ko pero gagawa ako ng way para

makatulong sa mga bata kasi sila...para sa akin, hindi ako habang buhay dito. Hindi ako

habang buhay na athlete kaya habang kaya ko, hindi ako mag-gigive up. Hindi naman

sa...parang sinasabi kong...pero kasi talagang mahirap talaga sitwasyon ngayon pero

thankful ako sa mga taong naniniwala, sinusuportahan ako...ayun.


I: Konti lang naman din...konti lang naman din yung mga narerecruit ‘no?

H: Sa amin marami. Ang tanong yung evaluation, monitoring, ang program ng coach,

ano-ano ang mga laro... ano ang mga laro dito...

I: Ah wala po bang mga laro?

H: Wala silang programa eh so...me...

I: Ganun din yung program dati sa diving haha...

H: Oo...pero kailangan kasi may isang tao...kaya sa diving ngayon medyo magulo?

I: Palagi naman po siya magulo haha dati pa.

H: Oo...kasi nagpapakain sila sa sistema. Ako, ayoko maging affected...apektado sa

sistema pero ganun yung sistema, pero hindi din ako magpapa-attach dun. So,

ayun...gumagawa ako ng way ko...gagawa ako ng way ko, gagawa ako ng sarili kong

laro, gagawa ako ng ganito para makita ng PWA, ng association namin na ganito...”ano

ginawa niyo?”...parang ganun diba? In that way, ma-chchallenge ko sila. Diba?

I: Opo...kayo...kayo din yung mga naghahanap ng competition niyo mismo?

H: Ngayon...gagawa ako ng competition para sa mga bata pero siguro...dahan-dahan.

Masyado akong ambisyosa pagdating sa weightlifting...ayun. Kasi syempre, dito ako

nagsimula eh. Gusto ko lang din, ma-realize ng mga bata ano yung mga pangarap nila sa

buhay.

I: Ayon. Uhm, tungkol naman sa sports facilities and equipment, uhm...ano po yung mga

usual niyong ginagamit? Adequate ba sila, updated, well-maintained?


H: Ay hindi.

I: ...enough to satisfy your training needs?

H: Ah, enough siya para ma-satisfy yung training ko pero kung bago? Hindi. 2005 pa.

Kung...yung gym? Hindi. 1980s pa. Ganun na itsura ng gym namin. Kung may

pagababago...wala. Ako lang nagttraining mag-isa. Sa SMAP, wala. Walang pagbabago.

I: Ganun pa din yung equipment.

H: Oo, ganun pa din yung equipment. Siguro it takes time pero kung may willingness,

madali lang. Kung may pera, madali lang haha diba? Yun naman talaga eh pero ang

tanong, saan nilalagay ang pera.

I: Opo...Pero paano yan diba sa ano po 2019, balak nila dito mag-SEA Games...saan...

H: Yun na nga eh. Puro sila salita. Wala sila sa gawa. And kasi private sector hindi

nagtitiwala sa POC. Kasi sila ang private diba? Hindi nagtitiwala kasi hindi nila alam

kung saan napupunta ang pera. Yun.

I: Ayon...

H: Wag mo ‘to ilabas ha...haha.

I: Opo. Very...ano lang po...parang ano...brief background ng lahat-lahat ng sports...

H: Sige sige. Okay lang.

I: Ayun po. Do you think factor po yung...yung sa athlete’s performance, kung baga sa

improvement nila yung state ng sports equipment and facilities or kaya nilang maka-


improve by themselves ng kahit hindi siya ganun ka-tech...kasing ganda nung sa abroad

or yung mga updated, yung mga bagong technology ganyan...

H: ...ano?

I: Tingin mo ba parang factor sa improvement ng atleta yung...yung state ng...

H: Ma-boost yung morale?

I: ...equipment and facilities...

H: Para sa akin, ma-boost ang morale.

I: Morale...lang. Pero kaya naman po nila gawan ng paraan yung improvement nila kahit

ganyan yung state ng equipment ngayon?

H: Kaya naman ata. Hindi ko alam eh depende kasi sa...sa totoo lang, sports masyadong

malaki. So kung maliit ang budget, mahirap. Super...NSA magkano na yung

gagastusin...diba kung A hanggang Z ang sports paano yun? So kailangan talaga ng

private sector.

I: Ayun po. Uhm, ano yung masasabi niyo dun sa latest issue tungkol dito sa Rizal

Memorial...na irerenovate daw, gagawing mall...ganyan. Ano...gaano ka-importante yung

venue na ‘to para sa mga athletes ngayon?

H: Para sa akin, historical yung venue na ‘to eh tapos bigla nalang itatanggal... Para sa

akin yung lugar na ‘to, bahay ko na...

I: 2nd

home...opo.


H: Oo...mas matagal pa ata ako dito kesa sa bahay namin. Uhm, nandito lahat. Yung

saya, yung lungkot, yung iyak, yung tawanan, kaibigan, pamilya, pangarap...ayon. Pero

wala...naka-depende pa rin sa kanila eh diba? Kahit ano kasi gawin natin, depende kung

ano yung nasa puso nila, syempre hindi natin masisisi kaya ayun. Pero sana, kung palitan

nila, bigyan nila ng magandang lugar...pero paki alagaan nalang yung historical...kasi

diba may ganun eh...historical...nasa...sa harap, alagaan nila yung nandoon...yung 90’s

ganito kasi nakita ko yung libro. Talagang historic talaga yung lugar na ‘to. Bigla nalang

ba natin tatanggalin dahil lang sa pera? Diba?

I: At tyaka may alternative venue po ba if ever mawala yung Rizal Memorial?

H: Clark.

I: Clark daw...

H: Zambales. Ang layo layo. Ako kasi, wala akong magawa kasi nga athlete yun lang

diba...di naman pwede na...di naman pwede na mag-kkwan ako na i-voice out “ah!

Ganito ganito!” ...hindi. Historical yung lugar na ‘to. Kahit sinong atletang tanungin mo,

ayaw na...diba? Kasi taga-dito kami. Naging parte ‘to ng childhood namin...tapos

tatanungin namin, “anong gagawin niyo sa lugar? New mall?

I: Ang dami-dami nang mall...

H: ...anong value? Anong value ang natutunan ng mga bata? Isipin nila ang kinabukasan

ng mga bata. Ayun. Ayoko na! Pwede na. Pwede na. Next na haha.

I: Haha, okay...uhm, tungkol naman sa popularization ng sports, anong...ano sa tingin

niyo yung mga popular sports today? Yung mga fully supported sa tingin niyo?


H: Basketball.

I: Basketball...

H: Uhh, ano pa ba...hmm...boxing, football, tennis, badminton, taekwondo. Yun lang ata

eh? Basta marami. Weightlifting pang mahirap kasi...

I: Hindi naman...

H: Yun ang katotohanan na kailangan kong tanggapin. Pero soon...diba?

I: Wala po talagang support given sa weightlifting...?

H: Sa ngayon, marami gustong sumuporta. Ang tanong, ano ang ginagawa ng association

namin... Lahat gusto ng pera...eh...sige gawin niyo na yung pera niyo.

I: Uhm, tingin niyo ba may bias in relation sa government at sa sports institutions sa pag-

support ng particular sports na ‘to...yung mga sikat...may...parang, may bias ba sa mga

sikat at sa hindi sikat na sports sa pag support nila? Sa tingin niyo...

H: Hindi ko alam eh...pero syempre, itong mga business na ‘to, syempre...kukunin lang

nila ang sikat. Kasi nagpoprofit sila eh. Depende nalang ano yung proposal nila...kasi

business management ang kinukuha ko...kung ano yung nakikita nilang magpoprofit sila,

mag-iincome sila, dun sila. Hindi naman pwede na parati nalang na mag-invest sila na

walang patutunguhan so kung...yung mga itong hindi sikat na sports nag-excel...naipakita

nila na...kasi kailangan resulta eh...ipakita muna ang resulta, bago sila maniwala.

I: Kailangan may ginto muna ganun...


H: Oo. Kung hindi, ipakitang may presentation ka na “ito ang posibilidad na manalo

kami.” So, kaya niyo bang suportahan ka...parang ganun eh...

I: Parang kailangan nila lagi ng proof or...

H: Oo. Kahit saan ka pupunta kailangan ng ganun. So yung...yun ang realidad na

kailangan natin harapin. Yun...ganun talaga ang buhay. Pero sana ‘no...hindi naman

pwede...siguro, alam naman din naman nila na...hindi yung champion na...ako nabuo...na

buhay ako sa mundong ito...hindi ako na-born as a champion. I work hard. I failed many

times to be a champion. Ayun...yun ang ma-realize nila.

I: Uhm...do you think, ano...yung mga sports personalities, nakaka-increase sila sa

popularity ng sports nila or sports...Philippine sports in general sa country?

H: ...ano?

I: Tingin niyo po ba yung mga sports personalities, kunwari, sila Alyssa Valdez ganyan

or sina...basta yung mga...nakakasikat sila ng sports nila or sports in general. Yung lahat

sa Pilipinas...nakaka-boost sila ng popularity ng sports?

H: Oo. Talagang naman...para sa akin naman, kung ano yung mga...diba...kung mga nag-

eendorse na ‘tong...Alyssa Valdez, Mika Reyes...kung sila yung...uhh...volleyball sila

kung...kasi yung mga iba, kung mag-eendorse hindi naman sila...artista sila...

I: Opo...

H: ...tapos nag-vovolleyball...sabi ko ang weird naman...

I: Pero sana mas bigyan nilang ano...priority mga national athletes...


H: ...kasi depende eh. Sila ang parating nasa national tv. UAAP. Yun talaga ang

nagpapasikat UAAP ganito ganito. Kailangan nating tanggapin yun. Pero kung gagawa

ka ng sarili mong pangalan, ba’t ka magiging insecure sa kanila kasi ako, as a person,

may kanya-kanya kaming purpose? So yun ang purpose nila eh, volleyball. So naging

sikat sila dun dahil gusto nila ang ginagawa nila so ayun. And they represent sports as a

whole...as a whole. So naiinspire nila ang kababataan...kabataan...kababaihan,

kabataan...na uhh...na mag...uhh...mag-engage sa sports.

I: May mga naging inspiration po ba kayo bago kayo sumali sa weightlifting?

H: Sa weightlifting, mga Chinese weightlifting. Uh...tapos uhm...kasi sila ang sikat sa

amin eh.

I: Ahh.

H: Then, syempre, Manny Pacquiao, Marestella Torres, ganun...yung mga sikat na

tinitinangala ko dati. Hanggang ngayon naman. Nakikita ko pa rin yung hard work nila.

I: Opo. Uhm, yung mga training or competition niyo po ba natetelevise or nafefeature sa

iba’t ibang media platforms?

H: Hmm?

I: Yung training or competition niyo po ba nafefeature or natetelevise sa iba’t ibang...or

nafefeature sa iba’t ibang media platforms sa bansa?

H: Mm...oo. Uhm, TV5, ABS, Sports U...oo. So yun, yung pinapakita nila...

I: Usually yun yung sumisikat...?


H: Ewan. hindi ko alam haha...

I: Hindi naman...?

H: Ang problema nga yung mga association ko na hindi sila gumagawa ng way para

maging sikat ang sports ko. Kasi nandun na ang opportunity. Bakit hindi nila...hindi nila

gamitin. Hindi naman sa gusto kong sabihin tanga sila! Tanga sila totoo...literal na tanga.

Hindi nila ginagamit utak nila.

I: Uhh...

H: Pero okay lang. Ganun eh. Siguro yun ang magiging...after Tokyo...basta sabi ko

Tokyo...

I: Tingin niyo po ba kailangan i-televise or i-promote sa iba’t ibang media platforms yung

each sport since may mga particular sports lang naman na na-tetelevise or something...

H: Sa tingin ko, oo.

I: Ayon. Tungkol sa...ay ayon. Ano...what motivates you to continue training po?

H: Yung goal ko. Sa Tokyo.

I: Tokyo 2020.

H: Oo. Sana ma-reach ko.

I: Kaya niyo po yan! Haha.

H: Yes...tapos uhm, mga bata. Sabi ko kung mag-gigive up ako, sino ang magiging

inspirasyon nila? Yun.


I: Uhm, ano...ano sa tingin niyo po yung mga factors sa athletes’ motivation para ma-

pursue pa po nila yung sport nila?

H: Uhm...ano?

I: Ano po sa tingin niyo yung mga factors sa...sa pag-motivate ng mga athletes para ma-

pursue pa po nila yung sport nila?

H: Kailangan nilang...alam mo yung when down sila, kailangan nila ng nagmomotivate

sa kanila kasi normal na may frustration ang isang atleta. Normal na gusto nila

magcompte. Kaya kailangan nila ng, yun, nagmomotivate sa kanila. Kailangan nila ng

ehemplo. Kaya ako, hindi ko sinasabi na hindi ako nahihirapan. Talagang walang easiest

way para maging champion. Walang easiest way para maging successful. Ang tanong

lang dyan kung gusto mo bang...yung goal mo, ready ka ba na...ma-reach yung goal.

Ayun...uhm, kasi kung mag-gigive up ako, pinapakita ko sa kabataan na, wala kang

patutunguhan dito sa sports. So kailangan rin talaga ng strong heart...uh...yung will.

Talaga, kung gusto nila...kahit ano pa sinasabi ng tao...kaya yun.

I: Uhm, ayon po. Ano po sa tingin niyo yung relationship ng sports at Philippine

development po in general? As a whole...

H: Philippine development... Para sa akin, yung sports kasi nag-uunite eh. Then sa sports,

marami kang natutunan. As a whole, dyan mo na nakikita ang sarili mo. Tapos dun mo na

parang nahuhugma ang pagkatao mo...sa sports kung baga, nandun na ang disiplina,

nandun na perseverance, yun... Sa sports, makakakuha ka ng maraming produktong...ah,

mga produktong mababait na tao haha. Yung may goal, may ganito. Sa sports, nag-uunite

ang mga tao. Although yung mga...pero sa sports kasi diba, kung makikita mo kung may


laro, lahat nag-uunite. Lahat may goal...lahat nagseset ng goal. So yun. Siguro

kung...tapos sa health din diba kung...kung sa sports...kung kumakain ka ng healthy,

parang chinichange yung lifestyle ng isang tao. Tapos, uhm sa sports...uhm, nagiging...sa

droga, sa bisyo, nagiging away ka eh...away...ano ba hindi ko alam...hmm oo away. So

nilalayo ka sa mga yun kasi alam mong may goal ka kaya disiplinado ka. So

magkakaroon tayo ng...kasi diba kailangan ng may...may mga productive na mga tao para

maging maganda ang development ng sports. So...yun.

I: Uhm, ano po yung mga concerns na kailangan pong tuunan at ma-prioritize in relation

to ano...sports development po sa Philippines?

H: Ayy. Dami. Grassroots...grassroots talaga eh. Nagsisimula sa grassroots. Grassroots

then LGUs. Kung lahat ng LGUs, lahat ng regional...lahat sila suportado sa sports, dun

ang sports natin...then kailangan naging...maging open tayo na hindi...hindi pwede na

atleta nagttraining na...magtraining na magtraining. Hindi. Hindi lang yan training.

Kailangan ng uhm...supporter...yung mga moral supports. Tapos yung strength and

conditioning ganun...nutritionist tapos education. Kailangan nasa PE tayo. Kailangan

may...kung titignan mo lahat sa...sa ibang bansa, may sports academy...

I: Opo.

H: Tayo wala. So kung lahat ng LGUs na ‘to may sports academy, so maganda ang

kalalabasan ng...ng sports sa atin. Kasi sa China, sa isang...sa isang city lang, limang

weightlifting gym sports academy. Sobrang daming ganito.

I: Ohh...sobrang dami.


H: Lima. Tayo isa lang tapos tatanggalin pa. Prioritize sports.

I: Uhh, sino sa tingin niyo ang...who should be considered as the main catalyst or

catalysts for change para sa...

H: Catalyst...ano yun?

I: Yung parang...sino sa tingin niyo makakapag-change sa ganitong sistema sa sports?

Yung athlete ba mismo? Yung government...? Yung...

H: Para sa akin, it starts with...sa baba. Sa atin. Yun...kasi kailangan din ipakita na as an

athlete, hindi ka dapat na...puro complain. Kung mahal mong ginagawa mo, mahal mo

ang Pilipinas, mahal mo ang sports mo, proud ka na maging Pilipino.

I: Ayon po. Last na po. What should be done in order to address the current issues in

Philippine sports and...and...and its athletes today? Ano po sa tingin niyo yung mga

pwede niyong i-suggest para sa development ng Philippine sports at sa empowerment ng

athletes? Filipino national athletes...

H: Hmm ano ba...? Diba nasabi ko na yan ayy hindi...yung...

I: Uhm...yun po...yung...

H: Uhh, ano yun?

I: Uhm...what should be done in order to address the current issues...

H: Talaga yung love talaga...kasi kung may pagmamahal ka sa sports mo ta’s nagseset ka

ng dreams...as an individual, as an athlete, kung may dreams ka, gagawa ka ng way para

ma-achieve mo yung dreams mo. Hindi ka mag-gigive up kasi mahal mo yung ginagawa


mo. Kasi kung mawawala yung mahal...yung pagmamahal mo sa sports, madali nalang

ang pag-gigive up. Pero kung mahal mo yung ginagawa mo, hindi ka mag-gigive up.

Kahit maraming rason para mag-give up, may isa kang rason para hindi mag-give up kasi

mahal mong ginagawa mo at mahal mo ang Pilipinas. Kahit sabihin na wala kang

allowance, wala kang suporta, gagawa ka ng way para ma-survive ang pinagdaanan mo.

Gagawa...gagawa ka ng way na lahat ng problemang ‘to, masolusyunan dahil gusto mo

ang ginagawa mo kasi kung parati tayo mag-cocomplain, wala eh. Why not, gagawa tayo

ng solusyon. Why not na maging parte tayo ng solusyon. Kasi talagang magsstart sa

baba. Kahit anong galing ng nasa taas, kung yung mga coaches, kung may mga athlete na

walang ginagawa, wala...wala pa rin patutunguhan ang Philippine sports. So parating

nasa puso ng atleta dapat yung pagmamahal sa Philippine sports.

I: Ayun lang po. Thank you!

3.2. Anjoe Loberanes- national athlete: Diving

I: Start na.

A: Game.

I: So, paano ka nagsimula sa diving?

A: Nagsimula ako sa diving nung nakita ko siya nung nagsswimming ako dito tapos

naisip ko na mahilig naman ako tumambling kaya tinry kong mag-try outs sa diving.

I: Ahh...anong...ilan taon ka na nun?


A: Ano ako...mag-tthirteen ako nung time na yun.

I: Ahh...tapos uhm, tungkol sa Philippine sports, ano yung masasabi mo dun sa current

state niya? Nag-progress ba siya or nag-regress?

A: Para sa akin, nung time nung last chairman, hindi siya nag-progress eh. But this...next

ano...chairman...

I: Okay naman?

A: ...naramdaman namin yung progression kahit two months pa lang siya...

I: Bakit? Ano yung naging pagbabago?

A: Lumaki yung allowance, gumanda yung facilities, nagbigay...nag-ano kaagad sila ng

mga equipment tapos may darating pa na...magkakaroon ng libreng food, tas...

I: Ano ‘to? Sa diving lang?

A: Oo.

I: Ahh...

A: Ay hindi...sa lahat.

I: Sa lahat? Ahh okay. Magkano ba yung allowance niyo ngayon?

A: Ngayon...

I: Compared dati...


A: Dati kasi ang allowance namin...nung pagkasali ko nun talaga, Php 6,000. Then, the

next ano, naging 8. Ngayon, naging Php 10,000. Pero sa mga ano lang yun...sa

mga...hindi pa medallist.

I: Ahh.

A: Kasi iba-iba yung category ng bawat sahod.

I: Pero pang-junior level pa ba yan or senior na yan?

A: Kasi ako, nag...syempre, politics...hindi natin alam. Hindi ako naangat kasi hindi

nalakad yung mga medal na pinanalo sa ibang bansa kaya i-stay pa rin ako sa Php 10,000.

I: Ahh. Pero ano...magkano naman yung pag sa...kapag medallist?

A: Pag medallist ka ng SEA Games or...pag SEA Games, usually pag gold, Php 43,000.

Tapos pag silver, Php 33,000. Tapos yung bronze, Php 25,000. Then mga medallist for

international, ayun...mga invitational, nasa Php 15,000- Php 18,000.

I: Ahh okay. Sige. Ano yung mga problems na nafeface mo as an athlete? Yung mga

difficulties mo sa diving ganyan...

A: Para sa akin, sa pagttraining naman, walang problema. Nagkakaroon lang ng problema

sa coach.

I: Coach pa rin.

A: Hindi nagkakaintindihan tapos syempre yung mga namumuno din sa sports kasi

nadadamay yung atleta...


I: Yung athlete...oo

A: ...dapat hindi nila pinoproblema yun.

I: Mhm. Okay. Paano...paano naman nasosolve yung mga iba’t ibang problems na ‘to

yung mga...kahit yung mga minor or major na problems...?

A: Nag-oopen forum kami para ma-resolve lahat ng mga problema. Inaano namin by

team.

I: Paan...Saan kayo kumukuha ng suporta or kanino?

A: Sa ano namin...sa pinaka-head namin. Na...mag-meeting kami na para at least maayos

na lahat ng mga problema dito...na tuloy-tuloy yung progression namin.

I: Sino ba yung head niyo ngayon?

A: Si ma’am Ann...pa rin.

I: Ma’am Ann? Ah...okay. Uh, may mga iba’t...may mga benefits pa ba kayong

natatanggap besides allowance?

A: Ngayon, wala pa kaming...kasi nawala yung dati...yung vitamins eh.

I: Ahh.

A: Nawala na yung benefits ng vitamins pero sabi naman ni chairman, ibabalik daw this

incoming...this coming...next month or basta...sabi naman ni chairman, ibabalik naman

daw niya yung mga benefits.


I: Ahh, okay. Sige. Ano yung...ano yung mga usual niyong ginagamit na sports facilities

or equipment? Tapos, adequate ba ‘to? Updated? Well-maintained?

A: Yung...parang cross-training namin?

I: Yung sa, pang-kalahatan ng training mo sa diving, sa weights, sa ano...

A: Ahh...sa weights, walang nagbago eh. Di pa siya napapalitan kaya lahat luma,

kalawang, sira-sira. Pero yung sa ibang sports, na katulad ng gymnast, lahat naman bago

kaya... Pero sa diving, hindi pa siya napapalitan...yung springboard eh.

I: Yun pa rin? Yung dati pa rin?

A: Yung pa rin. Yung dati. Pintura lang. Tas yung platform na pinag-aanuhan na mat,

dugtong-dugtong lang...pa rin hahaha...

I: Hahaha...

A: Kaya ayun.

I: Anong nangyari pala sa Trace? Ba’t di na naaano...ginagamit?

A: Sa Trace, nagkagulo kasi about dun sa mga senior ta’s di na pinagamit ulit dahil sa

ano...ginawa nila.

I: Hala...so kahit pag...competition hindi na ginagamit?

A: Hindi na siya pina-open dahil hindi pa rin yata nababayaran yung...ng PSC sa Trace.

I: Ahh. Kawawa naman yung mga athletes.

A: Syempre.


I: Ganda pa naman nung mga facilities dun. Ayon. Uhh, ano yung sa tingin mo yung mga

important factors na makaka-improve sa ath...performance ng atleta?

A: Makaka-improve sa atleta...syempre yung suporta ng government lalo na yung sa

pagkain kasi yun lang naman yung nagiging problema ng atleta eh. Kasi pag wala kang

pagkain, ta’s maayos na...yung talagang may nutritionist...ganon...

I: Oo...

A: Hindi mo nababantayan yung sarili mo. Kasi kami...mga...kami, kagaya namin,

syempre hindi namin, syempre hindi namin kaya lagi i-avail lahat ng food na

masustansya kaya panay kami de lata, noodles. Yun na masusupply sa amin eh hindi

naman dapat yun ang kinakain namin.

I: Oo nga. Ayon. Sa tingin mo ba yung mga...nakalimutan kong tanungin...sa tingin mo

ba ano...factor sa improvement ng athlete yung...yung pag...yung sports facility mismo?

Yung equipment na ginagamit niyo?

A: Oo. Pag maganda talaga yung ginagamit mong sports facilities tapos iba yung

environment, talagang gaganahan yung atleta na mag-training tapos...lalo na sa coach.

I: Nag...nagttraining ba kayo abroad? Para ano...

A: Ngayon...magkakaroon pa lang.

I: Magkakaroon pa lang...

A: Oo kasi for SEA Games.

I: Ahh. Dati niyo na ba ginagawa yun?


A: Oo. Dati na.

I: Sa China din?

A: Oo. Sa China din.

I: Ahh okay. Uhh...ano yung masasabi mo dun sa latest issue tungkol dito sa Rizal

Memorial? Yung sa pag-renovate?

A: Sobrang natatakot kaming lahat ng mga atleta. Gumawa pa nga kami ng petition. Nag-

write kami na wag ibenta...

I: Oo. Sumali din ako sa petition...yung online.

A: Oo. Syempre parang buhay na namin ‘to...

I: Oo nga eh.

A: Mahal na mahal namin ‘tong isports na ‘to tas biglang ganun...ibebenta nang walang

ano...

I: Gagawing mall...

A: Pwede namang i-renovate nalang...

I: Oo nga...

A: Kasi sobrang ganda nito eh.

I: Paano kung, if ever na mabenta nga ‘to, ano yung 2nd

option?

A: Siguro, para sa akin...syempre graduate naman ako...2nd

option ko...


I: ...yung kung san magttraining yung mga athletes...

A: Sabi naman ni chairman, meron daw ipapagawa sa...

I: Clark?

A: Clark, Pampanga. Pwede raw i-renovate yung ULTRA pero sa tingin ko, kung ganun

man mangyayari, hindi pa rin talaga matutuwa lahat ng mga atleta. Madidismaya sila,

mawawalan ng gana kasi iba na yung magiging environment nila pag lumipat eh. Tapos

hindi na sila sanay sa lugar.

I: Ayon. Ano sa tingin mo yung...yung mga popular sports ngayon na...tyaka yung mga

fully supported?

A: Mga popular sports ngayon kasi hindi kagaya sa amin. Yung mga popular, yung mga

basketball, volleyball, swimming, yan...

I: Sila yung mga...

A: ...taekwondo...

I: Sila yung mga sinusuportahan palagi?

A: Yan, lahat ng sinusuportahan palagi. Kung baga kami, option lang o laging huli

nasusupplyan kasi hindi siya gaanong kilala, hindi siya talagang sobrang sikat.

I: Pero dati sikat naman siya nung time nila ano...

A: Nung time nung mga senior. Nung pumasok yung mga batch namin, wala. As in,

nganga hahaha.


I: Haha. Ano nga pala nangyari after nung incident nila David?

A: Yung nangyari yung incident nung dalawang brothers...usually...nalungkot din ako

kasi nandun din ako nung time na yun eh. Nanood ako. Sinuportahan ko sila.

I: Oo...

A: Hindi ko inexpect na ganun mangyayari. Prepared naman sila eh. Every training...

I: Na-practice nila yung reverse dive na yun?

A: As in...si David, favorite dive pa niya yun.

I: Ah talaga?

A: Kaya hindi ko inexpect na mangyayari yun. Siguro nahawa lang sa una. Nahawa lang

ni John haha kaya kinabahan din...

I: Haha hala...

A: ...sumunod na rin.

I: Hala...

A: Oo.

I: Eh pero parang...may nabasa ako na...na parang nagkulang din sila sa training dahil

sa...

A: Suporta?

I: Oo pati sa facilities ganyan...


A: Ay hindi reason yun...yung ganun. Kasi isipin mo, yung mga senior na namin, dyan

sila nagtraining, hindi pa napapalitan yan, umabot sila ng Olympics.

I: Oo nga eh.

A: Nasa tao pa rin talaga yan at tyaka sa coach kasi sila, every morning...every morning,

afternoon naman sila nagttraining. Nagtraining pa nga sila ng China nun eh. Kaya wala

silang reason na maano...kasi sinuportahan naman sila. Kung hindi sila sinuportahan,

hindi sila matutuloy sa SEA Games.

I: Ayon...

A: Oo...

I: Napagalitan ba sila?

A: Hindi ko alam kung napagalitan sila kasi nakita ko sila masaya naman sila eh hahaha...

I: Hahaha...

A: Nag-apiran pa nga eh...

I: ...buti naman haha...

A: Nag-apiran pa nga sila eh...

I: Ayon. Uhm, tingin mo may enough support na...enough support na binibigay sa

diving? In terms of competition, media exposure, allowance, sports...


A: Meron naman binibigay siya pero hindi siya kagaya nung iba na talagang pag support

kasi sa namumuno din kasi...sa naglalakad...may time kasi na umalis kami, wala kaming

allowance. As in binigyan lang kami ng head namin. Pang ano lang...pang...

I: Own expenses...

A: Oo...own expenses...

I: Pero, madalas ba kayo magkaroon ng competition or dito lang palagi?

A: Madalas nagkaka-competition. Wala lang talagang budget.

I: Ahh...budget.

A: Walang binibigay yung taas para ano...kasi ang daming naka-lineup na competition,

nag-iinvite...

I: Ahh... saying.

A: At tyaka hindi rin prepared...

I: Ah, tingin mo ba may mga bias in relation sa government at other sports institutions sa

pag support ng iba’t ibang sports?

A: Sa tingin ko, wala naman siguro magiging bias kung maayos yung naglalakad ng mga

papeles niyo... Kung talagang mismong pinupuntahan mo...nilalakad mo...hindi yung

puro send lang...yahoo lang...sinesend lang ganun. Kung baga, effort lang dapat gawin

para hindi sabihin biased, hindi sinusuportahan...

I: So walang...walang parang bias in terms of popularity ganyan sa pag support?


A: Meron pag medallist ka.

I: Pag medallist.

A: Pag medallist. Talagang suporta sila pag medallist.

I: Kailangan ma-prove mo muna sarili mo?

A: Oo. Pero paano ka magiging medallist kung hindi ka rin susuportahan?

I: Yun nga eh. Uh, may sponsors ba kayo?

A: Sa ngayon, wala kaming sponsors.

I: Ah wala...Uh, sa tingin mo ba, yung iba’t ibang sports personalities nakaka-increase ng

popularity ng sports or Philippine sports?

A: Oo naman. Talagang nakaka-ano sila...lalo na pag high level hahaha...

I: Hahaha high level...

A: ...kagaya ni Hidilyn.

I: Uhm, saan...kanino ka nakakuha ng inspiration...sa pagpatuloy mo ng sports?

A: Sa pagpatuloy ng sports...na-inspired ako una, sa coach ko. Kasi syempre, coach ko

siya tapos naglalaro pa rin siya. And that time, nameet ko rin lahat ng mga senior diver.

Na-inspire ako sa isang naging kuya-kuyahan ko, si Rexel Ryan Fabriga kaya...

I: Ano...tapos, tingin mo ba kailangan i-feature sa iba’t ibang media platforms yung mga

sports? Yung mga sports events or competition...


A: Mas maganda kung imemedia talaga para at least makilala ng bawat tao lalo na yung

mga hindi nakakaalam na...”uy ganito pala ‘to” Pag tinanong mo, “ahh diving?

Swimming...”

I: Oo nga eh...

A: Hindi nila nalalaman kaya mas maganda, ilagay talaga sa media o mas maganda

ibalita sa 24 oras...

I: Haha 24 Oras...okay...ahh... ano yung nakaka-motivate sayo sa pagpatuloy mo sa

training?

A: Syempre namomotivate ako talaga sa pagtuturo ng coach at tsaka mayroon akong

paninindigan na gusto ko talagang patunayan sa Pilipinas na umangat ako sa larangan.

I: Ano ba yung mga goals mo ngayon?

A: Syempre mag-medalist sa SEA Games, mag-gold hanggang sa Asian Games, World

Championship, hanggang sa mapasok sa Olympics. Kung hindi man kayanin dun, at least

may napatunayan ako.

I: Ngayon...uhh, ano sa tingin mo yung mga factors sa...ng mga athletes sa pag motivate

sa sarili nila para ma-pursue pa nila yung sport nila?

A: Ano...dapat more...laro sa abroad para lalo silang ma...

I: Expose...

A: ...ma-expose at tsaka ma-expert sa mga kalaban nila na “uy tatalunin ko ‘to balang

araw...” mga ganun...


I: Oo, ayon. Uh, ano sa tingin mo yung relationship ng sports pati sa Philippine

development as a whole?

A: Sports ano...para sa akin...wala lang...

I: Paano sila magkaugnay? Yung Philippine development as in development ng buong

Pilipinas at yung sports sector...

A: Ay, meron talaga kasi nagkakaroon ng peace bawat bansa pag sa sports nagkausap-

usap.

I: Ahh okay. Ano...uhm, ano sa tingin mo yung mga concerns na kailangan na tignan

ng...ng mas may priority in relation to sports development? Yung mga concerns or needs

ng mga athletes ganyan...

A: Dapat lagging inaano ng mga taas yung bawat concern ng mga atleta kasi yun ang

pinaka importante para lalo sila mag-grow up, para lalo sila lumakas, mag-medal...dapat

yun ang laging tinitignan ng taas para lalong lumakas ang mga atleta ng Pilipinas.

I: Ano...ay ayon. Sino sa tingin mo yung...should be...sino sa tingin mo yung...yung main

catalyst/s or sinong makakapag-change sa ganitong sistema? Yung athletes ba? Yung

sports officials or yung government...?

A: Ang makakapagpabago niyan ano eh...dalawa eh. Yung mga atleta at tyaka yung

mismong chairman ng sports...na mapapatunayan ng chairman na ganito kalulupet ang

mga atleta ng Pilipinas.


I: Yesss. Haha okay. Last na. Ano sa tingin mo yung pwedeng magawa para ma-face

yung mga current issues ng Philippine sports pati ng mga athletes ngayon? Ano yung

masusuggest mo?

A: Ang masusuggest ko lang, dapat...uhh...pakinggan nila lahat ng mga hinain ng mga

atleta, pakinggan din nila na meron din kaming mata, boses na kung ano ang dapat ding

gawin sa bawat sports...kung saan ka man na sports. Dapat pakinggan din ng chairman

kung ano yung gusto namin para at least tuloy-tuloy ang development ng buong Pilipinas.

I: Buong Pilipinas...haha okay. Thank you! Yun lang.

A: Hahaha okay.

3.3. Cristina Onofre- national athlete: Gymnastics

I: Uhm, paano ka nag-start sa gymnastics?

C: Paano ako nag-start?

I: Oo.

C: Una noon, sa public school lang ako and then nag-cocompete ako sa...anong tawag

dito...sa Manila Meet.

I: Ohh okay. Ilang taon ka nag-start?

C: 9 years old.

I: Wow...bata pa.


C: So...mga 12 years na haha.

I: 12 years ka na...uh, ano masasabi mo tungkol sa current state ng Philippine sports

ngayon? Nag-progress ba siya? Nag-regress ba siya?

C: Uhm, sa ngayon kasi, sobrang...maski dati pa, sobrang politics na talaga ng sports

especially sa gymnastics. Lalo ngayon, magse-SEA Games na, sobrang nagkakagulo na

kung sino sa lineup. Ganun. As in sobrang...yung iba nga parang nag-qquit na...

I: Hala...

C: ...yung iba nag-gigive up na kasi nga wala daw uhm yung...ano tawag dito...yung

parang progress tas yun pa...ngayon, kasi ilang months nalang SEA Games na so

ayun...politics talaga.

I: Hala...ayun. Uhm, ano sa tingin mo yung mga...ano pa yung mga ano...problems na na-

feface mo as an athlete o kaya sa part mo mismo besides yun...yung politics...

C: Sa sports ko, unang-una yung...siguro yung favouritism ng coaches ay...siguro ako rin

nagkamali nun pero kasi sa ngayon, parang ano...ang problem namin is sa coaching kasi

hindi kami nag-poprogress as an athlete. So...tapos yung ano pa...kumukuha sila ng Fil-

Am kasi nga...kasi nga parang hindi na namin kaya sa SEA Games.

I: Ahh so doon nagkakaroon ng favouritism?

C: Oo.

I: Ahh...paano mo...paano niyo nasosolve yung mga problems na ‘to at kanino or saan

kayo nakakakuha ng suporta?


C: Uhm nareresolve namin ‘to sa secretary general namin. Kay tita Betina or kaya

kakausapin namin yung coaches namin tapos aadvisan kami kung ano dapat naming

gawin...at sa mga taong positive.

I: Ahh. Magkano yung monthly or yearly allowance niyo?

C: Actually ako...kami kasi, diba nag-medal kami sa SEA Games last time third kami and

then ang ginagastos...ay...ang tinatanggap ko, siguro mga 5 months ata yun,

nakakatanggap ako mga 25k monthly. Eh dumating ‘tong PNG. Nung PNG nag top 4, so

natanggal ako. Natanggal yung allowance ko so naging class C ako. So 15 yung

nakukuha kong allowance ngayon. Pero nagkaroon ulit kami ng...ng game ulit na bagong

rank, nag top 2 ako doon. Nagyon hindi na ako...ay, ineendorse ako pero hindi na

mabalik yung allowance kong 25 so 15 pa rin ako hanggang ngayon.

I: Bakit?

C: Kasi, siguro yun yung first...kasi alam mo naman sa atin dito, politics talaga haha...

I: Oo...

C: ...so ang dali lang nila magtanggal pero ang hirap nila mangbalik. So yun yung

problem...

I: Grabe...

C: ...sabi ko nga eh, sana nag-PNG nalang. Sayang naman yung SEA Games. 2 years yun

tapos PNG lang...

I: Oo...dun lang agad...


C: Oo...sige mag- PNG nalang tayo...

I: Oo nga eh...magkano ba yung difference? I mean, ano ba yung difference ng mga

allowances, yung mga class...yung classes?

C: Ahh, sa gold kasi 40...ngayon tumaas, 43. Sa silver is Php 30,000 tapos...ay siguro

mga 33 ata sa silver tas 28 sa bronze.

I: Pang...pang senior or junior level na ‘to? Both...?

C: Ah, hindi. Senior lang. Yung mga lumalaban...yung sa SEA Games, yun yung

qualified para magkaroon ka ng medal pang ganun...

I: Ahh. Junior ka pa ba or senior na?

C: Senior na. Senior citizen hahaha.

I: Uhm, at may iba pa ba kayong mga nakukuhang sports benefits besides allowance?

C: Actually yung president namin ngayon...ay, yung chairman namin ngayon, sinasabi

niya na magkakaroon na kami ng canteen. Canteen pero hindi yun ibabawas sa allowance

namin so parang pang buong athlete talaga yun na provided ng PSC.

I: Ahh. Buti naman. Pero kailan ba ‘to matutupad?

C: Siguro after ng bakasyon. Inaayos pa kasi eh. Kasi sobrang gulo talaga...kasi nga diba

parang ibebenta na nga ‘tong Rizal. So inaantay nalang yung permission na...syempre

sobrang tagal na nito tas gaganunin nalang nila.


I: Ano masasabi mo tungkol dun sa issue...yung ibebenta ‘to...yung Rizal Memorial, ano

masasabi mo dun?

C: Siguro, ang masasabi ko dun, hindi papayag yung mga athlete.

I: Oo syempre...

C: At tyaka yung mga...siguro...kasi syempre sobrang tagal na nito. Siguro

kung...renovate nalang. Ganun da’t yun. Eh kasi ‘tong si Erap eh, hindi niya

pinapahalagahan ang sports natin eh...

I: Gaano ba ka-important itong venue na ‘to sa mga atleta?

C: Ay sobrang importante kasi sobrang dami nang naging memories nito maski yung mga

artista, yung mga...din sobrang importante sa kanila nito. At tyaka yung gym namin as

in...syempre everyday kami nag-ttrain half...half ng life namin nandito na...

I: Oo...

C: ...as in parang, pag naglolokohan nga kami, bahay namin ‘to, ang laki ng sala namin...

I: Hahaha...oo...

C: ...kasi buong Rizal eh. Kaya pag nandito na kami, oh, wala nang kakampi sa amin kasi

ano namin ‘to...haha.

I: Haha...oo turf...uhm, ano yung mga usual na sports facilities or equipment na ginagamit

niyo? Updated ba sila? Adequate? Well-maintained? Nakaka-satisfy ba ito sa ano...sa

needs niyo sa pag training?


C: Ahh. Ngayon, medyo okay naman na kasi nabigay naman nila yung ano...equipment

namin. May bago kami eh. Lahat ng ano namin...

I: Sa gym?

C: ...oo. Lahat ng equipment namin bago yun. So yung...kaso yung problema lang dun is

nag-aano kami ng area kasi syempre diba pag sa ibang bansa, sobrang different talaga...

I: Oo...

C: ...ng ano natin...klima sa kanila so pag lalaro tayo, parang ano...nakaka-ano ng

katawan. Syempre sobrang init sa’tin tas lamig. Yun pa lang para ang hirap na i-control.

I:...mag adjust...oo...

C: ...diba...yung climate change...

I: Uhh, ano sa tingin mo yung important factors sa pag improve ng performance ng mga

atleta? Ano yung mga aspects na nakaka-improve sa athlete’s performance?

C: Ang pinaka una siguro yung masusuggest ko ano...psychologist.

I: Psychologist...

C: Yes. Kasi...

I: Mental game...

C: Oo kasi lahat talaga sobrang mental lang talaga. Si Simone Biles, as in half ng ano

niya...mental lang talaga as in psycho lang talaga daw. So yun talaga yung...hindi lang


porket magse-SEA Games tyaka lang magkakaroon ng psychologist. Syempre kailangan

talaga yun...parang...

I: ...oo kahit magsstart pa lang...oo...

C: ...oo ganun...so yun talaga. Kasi mental naman talaga. Kahit may masakit sayo, kung

lakas ng utak mo, isip mo, magagawa mo. Parang wala...naging mental sayo...mental

psychology...mapupunta ka nalang sa mental hahaha.

I: Hahaha...

C: ...yun nga eh...sobrang daming negative...ang daming magagawa ng psychology of

athlete...

I: Oo...uhm, sa...ano sa tingin mo yung mga popular sports ngayon at yung mga fully

supported?

C: Boxing, basketball...yun naman eh. Soccer, football...

I: Hindi na ba popular ang gymnastics ngayon?

C: Hintayin natin. Magiging popular din yan.

I: Pero parang popular rin siya sa mga ano...sa youth ganyan...

C: Ahh...pero actually, sa atin lang naman hindi popular eh kasi sa ibang bansa sobrang

popular niya. Siguro antayin nnatin may mag-medal ng sobrang dami lalo na dito sa

2019. Makikilala na ang gymnastics kasi actually meron na isang bat...may lalaki...si

Yulo.


I: Yulo? Ah siya yung nag-compete dun sa ano...

C: Oo...dun. Sobrang lakas niya. Feeling ko siya yung mag-lilift up talaga nung...pero

kung bibigyan ng chance, why not naman diba...2019...

I: Oo haha...may enough support ba na binibigay sa inyo sa gymnastics like competition

and media exposure, sa sports facilities, allowance...? Iba’t ibang ganun...

C: Sa exposure, waley kasi minsan...actually yung iba kasi, kaya sobrang confident nila

mag-compete, mga ibang kalaban namin...kasi may exposure sila.

I: Sunod-sunod yung mga competitions...

C: Oo. Kami naman, onti lang kasi syempre yung budget nga...

I: Oo...

C: ...ewan ko. Dati pa yang budget na yan nakakaloka na eh. So yun talaga yung

problema...exposure tapos yung support talaga na kailangan...needs talaga ng mga

athletes minsan kailangan talaga nila ibigay...

I: Pero madami nag-iinvite sa inyo?

C: Oo sobrang dami kaso kunwari...mag-iinvite nga, pero limited lang yung sasama.

Limited lahat so kailangan mag-eevaluate. Yun. Nagkaka-away away syempre...

I: Oo...gusto lahat eh...ayon...ano...uhm...may...tingin mo ba may parang bias in relation

sa government at sa other sports institutions sa pag-supporta ng particular sports like sa

boxing, sa gymnastics...?


C: Feeling ko meron...

I: Meron...?

C: ...oo kasi...siguro kung sino yung kilala...ay, kung sinong may hawak ng sports, yun

yung susuportahan nila. Kasi talagang hindi talaga mawawala yung bias or politics

na...lalo na dito sa Pilipinas...

I: Oo...ayon...may mga sponsors ba kayo na nakakatulong?

C: Waley.

I: Wala kayong sponsors?

C: Wala as in wala! Si Caloy lang. Yun nga si Yulo lang. Siya lang yung may sponsor

kasi syempre siya lang yung...nung nag-medal kami nung SEA Games, wala talaga eh...

I: Wala pa after nun?

C: Wala. As in waley talaga. Ang...biruin mo...pinaka marami kaming sponsors dito

boxing, soccer...yung talagang kilala lang ba...

I: Oo...

C: ...kami talagang wala...ahh...hindi ko alam...walang pera...

I: ...paano pa kaya...ano...yung iba...ahh...sa tingin mo ba yung iba’t ibang sports

personalities nakaka-increase ng popularity ng sports or Philippine sports mismo?

Nakaka-boost ba siya ng popularity ng Philippine sports? Yung mga sikat na atleta...?

C: Actually...yung iba. Pero syempre mas maganda kung lahat diba...


I: Oo...

C: ...as in lahat makikilala kasi may mga ibang tao, hindi nila alam ibang sports na

‘to...ganyan...so ayun.

I: Uhm, kanino ka nakakakuha ng inspiration para ma-pursue mo pa yung sport mo?

C: Kay Anjoe...joke! Hahaha.

I: Ohh! Hahaha Anjoe...

C: ...hinde. Actually...

I: May mga sports personality...may mga iniidolo ka ba...ganyan...

C: Unang una sa lahat...talaga yung inspiration ko is my family and then, second si God.

Tapos talaga yung may goal talaga ako...syempre si Simone Biles, idol ko yun. So...yung

mga talagang nagbigay ng karangalan dito sa atin...inspiration ko kasi mga taong nag-

pupush sa akin...na nagtitiwala talaga sa akin...na kaya ko. Especially talaga yan si Anjoe,

sobrang push siya sa akin. Naniniwala siya talaga na mag-memedal ako...pero syempre

sometimes na...na na-ddown ako...super dami ko naging injury...kaya minsan...yon

haha...eh syempre, kailangan lang talaga, never give up. Yun lang.

I: Oo. Tama haha. Uhm..ayon...ano pa...

C: ...kasi hindi ko naman...di ko naman mararating yung goal ko kung hindi ko i-ttry,

kung mag-give up ako...

I: Ano...uhm, ano sa...yung mga training niyo ba or competitions natetelevise or

nafefeature sa iba’t ibang media platforms?


C: SEA Games. SEA Games lang...

I: SEA Games lang...?

C: ...oo.

I: Training wala?

C: Oo...wala...

I: Walang nafefeature? Kahit na yung...si Yulo?

C: Yan. Siya...siya...most of the time siya at tyaka si Rayland. Yung kaninang...eto...yung

may hawak ng...yung may ganun...

I: ...ahh oo...

C: ...kasi gold medal siya nung SEA Games eh.

I: So kailangan medallist talaga kapag...ano ‘no...

C: True...true yun.

I: Ahh...ayon. Tapos uhm, tingin mo ba kailangan or important na ma-televise or ma-

feature yung iba’t ibang sports events sa public?

C: Oo sobra as in kasi ang sports kasi, especially sa amin...sa...dito...kailangan talaga ng

suporta ng mismong bayan natin. As in lahat ng tao dapat alam nila kung...syempre sila

yung mga nagbabayad nung buwis at...I mean is...dapat alam nila kung sino ang mga

taong suportahan nila tas alam nila yung mga sports kasi hindi sila aware sa mga ibang

sport...


I: ...yung iba...usually ilan lang like basketball...

C: ...oo...yun lang yung kilala nila. Laging yung sikat kasi syempre yun lang yung

natetelevise eh...

I: Oo...

C: ...ayun. Yun lang. Nakaka-offend hahaha.

I: ...haha...uhm, ayon...what...ano yung nakaka-motivate sayo sa pagpatuloy sa training

mo ngayon?

C: Sobrang motivated lang ako ngayon mag-medal talaga eh...

I: Ahh...oo.

C: Kahit ngayon, ang dami ko nang injury, yun talaga yung pinaka first goal ko kasi

biruin mo, half of my life nandito na ko...mag-gigive up pa ba ako dahil sa injury ko

diba? So diretsuhin...diretsuhin mo na.

I: Diretsuhin mo na...uh, ano sa tingin mo yung mga main factors sa pag...sa athlete’s

motivation para ma-pursue pa nila yung sport nila mismo?

C: Siguro yung mga taong positive sa life at tyaka yung connection with the coaches...

I: Oo...

C: ...kasi yun naman...

I: ...oo...yung relationship...


C: ...oo...yun ang pinaka importante kasi kung gusto ng bata or kaya kung ayaw niyo sa

coach niyo...kung parang may conflict kayong dalawa, hindi mo magagawa kung ano

yung gusto mo kasi syempre naiilang ka diba...kailangan mo ng tulong kasi sa lahat

talaga ng sports, kung gusto mo talaga yung relationship with your coach

nagkakaintindihan kayo, dun talaga mas mag-iimprove ka at tyaka talagang makikinig

ka...mamomotivate ka...yun.

I: Ano sa tingin mo yung relationship ng sports at Philippine development as a whole

mismo?

C: Uhm...ano ba hahaha...

I: Uhm...yung development ng buong Pilipinas at sports sector, ano yung relationship nito

sa tingin mo?

C: Uh...hindi ko alam kung paano eh...

I: Like uhm...paano siya nakaka-boost sa Philippine development? Yung sports...

C: Kasi...minsan kasi...hindi kasi sinusuportahan ng ano eh...hindi ko alam kung

nabooboost talaga haha...

I: Ah okay...sige...ahh...ano yung mga concerns sa tingin mo na kailangan ma-prioritize

or matingnan lalo in relation sa sports development? Like ano yung mga kailangan ng

mga atleta ngayon?

C: Ngayon?

I: Oo...


C: Suporta talaga ng government. Talaga yung mga needs...lahat as in kailangan kasi...sa

atin kasi...dito sobrang talagang wala eh. Lalo na yung sa therapy natin. Biruin mo yung

mga therapy natin, nung nag-SEA Games kami, wala kaming therapy. Naiinggit kami

kasi lahat ng nandoon...

I: Walang sumama sa inyo?

C: ...wala. Merong therapy pero pang ilang sports lang. Pang...pang...siguro mga ilang

sports...yung mga ilang sports, isang therapy so kami, habang naghihintay sa podium,

lahat sila...may therapeutic sila, may nag-aano sa kanila...kami...sari-sarili kami.

I: Naaassign sila per sport? Hindi sila pangkalahatan?

C: Hindi. As in sobrang nakakaloka lang kasi sobrang wala sila talagang suporta sa mga

atleta so kailangan mo talaga magbigay ng medal bago may support. Paano magkakaroon

ng medallist kung hindi mo sinusuporta yung...

I: ...oo...walang competition...

C: ...oo...wala...at tyaka walang...mga needs ng mga atleta, hindi nila...kailangan may

medal muna bago nila ibibigay yung needs...so yun. Gusto talaga nila may result.

Nakakalurki.

I: Ayon...uhh, sino sa tingin mo yung...sino sa tingin mo yung mga ano...catalysts for

change? Yung athletes? Yung sports officials ba? Yung government? Sino yung tingin

mo yung makakapagpabago ng sistema...?


C: Actually government...actually lahat. Siguro ano lang talaga...committment lang sa

isa’t isa...government tas yung sa PSC, POC tapos sa tas sa coaches, athlete...parang

ganun. Triangle. Pyramid haha.

I: Haha ayon, last na. Ano sa tingin mo yung pwede magawa in order to ano...address the

current issues sa Philippine sports at sa mga atleta ngayon? Ano yung masusuggest mo

para sa Philippine development at athlete empowerment?

C: Wag silang korakot haha. Ano sila...maging...uhm...kwan lang sila sa...I mean

mas...maging ano sila...focused talaga sa athlete kasi hindi naman sila mabibigyan ng

medal kung hindi nila mabibigay yung talagang needs ng katawan, ng utak, ng

pisikal...lahat. Sa gym, sa training, mga coaches, ng exposure...so kailangan

talagang...wag na silang mangorakot haha.

I: Haha okay. Yun lang. Thank you!

C: Thank you!


Appendix 4: Research Documentation (Participants and other facilities)

Scanned Image - CAS DSpace - University of the Philippines Manila

Documents

Transcript of Scanned Image - CAS DSpace - University of the Philippines Manila