Team Philippines concludes Paris Games with its best Olympic campaign

Metro Manila, Philippines — The medal quest of Filipino athletes at the Paris 2024 Olympics ended with the country's best campaign in 100 years of participation in the games.

David Nepomuceno competed in the Olympic track and field in Paris in 1924. While he was unsuccessful in his medal bid, Nepomuceno’s participation formalized the country’s membership in the International Olympic Committee, paving the way for future Filipino athletes to become Olympians.

A century later, Team Philippines returned to the French capital and bagged four medals at the 2024 Summer Games.

It matched the number of medals secured in Tokyo 2020, which was held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In that edition of the games, the Philippines finished 50th.

But this time round, the country clinched the 37th spot among 206 participating nations with its two gold medals and two bronze medals.

Tied with Hong Kong in the rank, the Philippines led the Southeast Asia region in the medal board. Indonesia trailed behind at joint 39th after winning gold in sport climbing and weightlifting, as well as clinching bronze in badminton.

Gold rush

However, the highlight of Philippine excellence at the Paris Olympiad was gymnast Carlos Yulo, who won two gold medals in the floor exercise and vault of men’s artistic gymnastics.

He was the first Filipino gymnast to win in the quadrennial meet. Millions of pesos in cash incentives, a fully-furnished condominium, and various lifetime prizes await him upon his return.

His gold medal rush followed the historic win of Hidilyn Diaz, the Filipina weightlifter who picked up the first Olympic gold for the Philippines in Tokyo 2020.

Bronze hardware

Boxers Aira Villegas and Nesthy Petecio helped boost the country’s Paris campaign with their bronze medals.

In her Olympic debut, Villegas settled for bronze as she lost to Turkey’s Buse Naz Cakiroglu in the semifinal round in the women’s boxing 50-kilogram (kg) category.

Petecio bowed to Poland’s Julia Szeremeta in the women’s boxing 57-kg division. She became the first Filipino boxer to clinch multiple Olympic medals after her silver finish in the Tokyo Olympiad.

Narrow misses

The Philippines also held on to their seats as the country saw delegates come close to a podium finish.

Pole vault star EJ Obiena, World No. 2 and considered the country’s strongest medal bet in Paris, placed fourth to end his journey.

Obiena and eventual bronze medalist Emmanouil Karalis of Greece both failed to clear 5.95 meters in the men’s pole vault final. However, a foul in a previous height by Obiena became the deciding factor against the cleaner record of his friend Karalis.

Filipino boxer Carlo Paalam also capped his Paris Olympic stint after a split decision loss to Australia’s Charlie Senior in the men’s 57-kg division quarterfinals. He did not advance to the semifinals where he would have been guaranteed a bronze medal.

Meanwhile, Bianca Pagdanganan showed promise in Olympic golf during the thriller final round. Pagdanganan closed the women’s individual stroke play with a total of 282 points after four rounds for a joint fourth place finish.

All-out Filipino performance

The Philippine contingent to the Paris Games was composed of 22 athletes. The other 16 athletes also fought valiantly in representing the country on the Olympic stage.

Levi Jung-Ruivivar, Emma Malabuyo, and Aleah Finnegan went all out in the women's artistic gymnastics but did not make it to the cut-off for the finals.

During the repechage rounds, Lauren Hoffman ranked 20th in the women’s 400-meter hurdles, while John Cabang withdrew from the men's 110-meter hurdles due to an injury. Repechage rounds are, in essence, second chance events after not making the cut-off in the qualifications. They did not advance to the semifinals.

Two other boxers had unanimous decision losses in the Round of 16. Eumir Marcial, a bronze medalist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, had an early exit in the men's 80-kg weight class. Hergie Bacyadan faced the top seed of the women’s 75-kg division.

Fencer Sam Catantan bowed out of contention after a close 15-12 loss to the top seed of the women's individual foil in the Round of 32.

Golfer Dottie Ardina finished in a tie at 13th place with a 285 total.

Judoka Kiyomi Watanabe concluded her stint in a swift loss in the Round of 32 in the women's -63kg category.

Joanie Delgaco, the first Filipino rower to compete in the Olympics, finished 20th overall after posting her best time in the women’s single sculls of the games.

Swimmer Kayla Sanchez ranked 15th in the women’s 100m freestyle semifinals, while Jarod Hatch missed the semifinal cutoff.

Weightlifter Elreen Ando recorded personal bests but finished outside of the podium in the women's 59-kg category. John Ceniza (men's 61-kg) and Vanessa Sarno (women's 71-kg) made early exits to cap their Olympic debuts.

Heroes' welcome

Team Philippines will arrive in Manila on Tuesday, Aug. 13, at the Villamor Airbase. They will proceed to the Philippine International Convention Center for a "heroes' grand homecoming parade" in the afternoon.

It will culminate at the Malacañan Palace, where President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will receive the Olympians and conduct a special program.

Motorists are advised to take alternative routes.