A 22-member Team Philippines will compete in the Paris 2024 Olympics, starting with a grand opening ceremony on the Seine River on Friday, July 26 (Saturday, July 27, Philippine time).
This marks the first time an Olympic Summer Games opening ceremony will be held outside a stadium. The Filipino delegation, like all others, will be aboard a boat.
However, Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Bambol Tolentino earlier said that not all athletes will join the parade. Gymnast Carlos Yulo, rower Joanie Delgaco, and boxer Eumir Marcial will rest as they begin competing on Saturday, July 27.
Tokyo Olympics boxing silver medalists, Davao City-born Nesthy Petecio and Cagayan de Oro City's Carlo Paalam, will be flag-bearers during the over six-kilometer river parade.
It starts at 7:30 p.m. CET (1:30 a.m., Saturday, Philippine time) from Austerlitz bridge near Jardin des Plantes, circling Île Saint Louis and Île de la Cité, passing under bridges and gateways. Athletes on parade boats will see Games venues like Parc Urbain La Concorde, Esplanade des Invalides, and Grand Palais, ending at Iéna Bridge before the Trocadéro finale.
The delegation also includes weightlifters Elreen Ann Ando, Vanessa Sarno, and John Ceniza; golfers Dottie Ardina and Bianca Isabel Pagdanganan; boxers Hergie Bacyadan and Aira Villegas; athletics' Ernest John "John" Obiena, John Cabang, Lauren Hoffman, fencer Samantha Kyle Catantan; gymnasts Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo, and Levi Ruivivar; swimmers Jarod Hatch and Kayla Sanchez; and judoka Kiyomi Watanabe.
This is the largest delegation the Philippines has ever sent to the Summer Olympic Games, surpassing the 19 athletes in 11 sports fielded in Tokyo 2020. The pressure to exceed the Tokyo medal haul is daunting.
In Tokyo, Mindanaoans delivered one gold medal, two silvers, and one bronze - the best Olympic finish for the Philippines. Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz of Zamboanga City clinched the country's first gold in Olympic history, while Petecio and Paalam added silvers, and Marcial, also of Zamboanga City, secured a bronze.
Hopes are high that returning Olympic boxing medalists Petecio, Paalam, and Marcial will improve their performances. Obiena, currently world No. 2 in men's pole vault, is expected to excel, along with Sanchez, who won a silver and bronze for Canada in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
As the world's biggest sports event unfolds, let us cheer and pray for our Filipino Olympians to represent the three stars and the sun with pride.
Go Team Philippines!
Laban, Pilipinas!
