Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 6) — Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz has been named by the Philippine Sportswriters Association as the 2021 PSA Athlete of the Year for winning the country’s first Olympic gold medal.
Diaz is expected to receive the award during the San Miguel Corporation-Philippine Sportswriters Association Annual Awards Night on March 14 at the grand ballroom of the Diamond Hotel.
The pride of Zamboanga ended the country’s 97-year wait for the elusive Olympic gold medal after lifting a total of 224 kilograms, an Olympic record, in a dramatic finale in the women’s -55 kg division.
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“Hidilyn Diaz winning the country’s first ever Olympic gold medal was definitely the highpoint of what had been a truly memorable year for Philippine sports. The PSA was unanimous in its choice of Hidilyn as our Athlete of the Year for 2021,” said PSA president Rey Lachica.
Diaz also went down in history as the second Filipino athlete to win multiple Olympic medals after the late swimmer Teofilo Yldefonso, who bagged two bronzes in the 1928 and 1932 Olympics.
This is the third time that Diaz will receive the highest honor bestowed by the country’s oldest sports media organization.
The 30-year-old weightlifter first won the award in 2016 when she bagged a silver in the Rio De Janeiro Olympics, ending the country’s 20-year medal drought in the quadrennial showpiece.
In 2018, Diaz shared the same honor with the golfing trio of Yuka Saso, Bianca Pagdanganan and Lois Kaye Go, along with skateboarder Margilyn Didal when they accounted for the four gold medals the Philippines won in the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.
Diaz will lead the compact list of top achievers from last year who will be recognized during the affair that counts on the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, and Cignal TV as major backers.
The annual event is also presented by MILO® Philippines, 1PACMAN Partylist, Philippine Basketball Association, Rain or Shine Paint, ICTSI Foundation, Inc., Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas, SMART Sports, Philippine Racing Commission, and the MVP Sports Foundation, Inc.
