to live, to love, to learn, to leave a legacy… and to laugh along the way
We need a pathway that is visible, accessible and continuous. We need a grassroots sports program could help identify talent outside the major urban centers. We need a successful pilot program that could demonstrate how schools, local governments, sports associations and national agencies can work together to develop athletes. The aim is not merely to find the next champion. It is to build a sustainable system capable of finding and developing champions year after year.
How can we turn our encouraging results into sustained improvement? Our proposal: The objective should not be to concentrate exclusively on athletes who are already successful. The objective should be to create a continuing supply of talented athletes who can eventually replace them.
The stage is set. Will the youthful, battle-tested continuity template of the West’s elite hold firm? Or will newly-minted “superteams” click fast enough to steal the spotlight? This season promises another unforgettable theatre of star power, redemption schemes and perhaps, the birth of budding careers and team dynasties.
Fifteen years earlier, during EDSA I, I had been a part of the military contingent that was sent to effect the turnover of Malacanang. This time, in 2001, I was going back for essentially the same purpose – but under an entirely different set of circumstances.
One of the unique adventures of my life. I walked right into a NPA camp with hundreds of armed rebels and supporters. For once in my life, I had managed to play the role of a staffer/news reporter – without anyone knowing that underneath those civilian clothes was an olive-drab heart of an Army officer.
The next Asian Games should not be another four-year wait followed by another medal count. It should be the result of four years of deliberate work. The medals we win in the next Asian Games will be determined, in large measure, by what we do with the athletes we have today – and by the urgency we demonstrate in dealing with it.
