A magical experience, indeed

One by one, like falling leaves, they have dropped out of competition. Why did we bother at all to send them to the Olympics in London when it had already been so obvious that our chances were very poor, probably poorer even than during the last one? But maybe our sports officials had to insist on sending their wards to justify their own junkets, despite knowing how they would fare.

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Look what happened to Jessie Lacuna. Fifth among six, in the first swimfest. And Brian del Rosario, on whom we pinned some hopes in the shooting tilt. Alas, he dropped almost immediately, too. And what a shame our weightlifting attempt was. Not only could poor Hidilyn Diaz not manage to keep the weights up, she even fell over backwards. One could only feel sympathy for her as she made her excuses of being nervous and feeling dizzy later. Clearly, she does not yet have the poise of an Olympian. What a sad start for the Philippines.

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And then came Mark Barriga. Oh! The boyish-looking and small Barriga came into the ring to face a taller, heavier opponent from Italy. How would he fare against him? But the diminutive Barriga was a revelation. Not only was he poised and self-confident, he startled even the commentators covering the fight. Although they sounded bored when the bout began, they were soon enthusing about “the tiny boxer from the Philippines”, as one of them referred to our boy.

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In a short while, Barriga had confused the taller Italian, who did not seem to know where the punches were coming from. Barriga hit, threw combinations and sides stepped, then came back to shock, not only Manuel Cappai, but apparently even his coach and his corner. All the while, those annotating the fight were all enthusiastically praising Barriga, with terms like “terrific performance”, “ring-wise”, “wonderful combinations”, “very impressive” while the crowd shouted encouragements to the feisty Pinoy who nimbly skipped and punched and slid off, adroitly. I now know why they call him the “Little Pacman”. He must surely idolize our “Pambansang Kamao (national fist).”

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There was no doubt about it. The score was 17-7, in favor of Barriga. And it was a popular decision, too, the howling of the crowd confirmed it. However, the medal is a little far-off yet. I understand Barriga has to face at least two more opponents before one will glint before his eyes. So let us pray for him, as we do for the Pacman, so, at least, our delegation will not come home empty-handed – again. Viva Barriga!

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Meanwhile, let us be thankful that the Olympic Games have been getting good weather, so that no events will be missed. So let's just endure our own sporadic showers and rainfall, and even twisters and floods, since we also get blessed with good weather when we have big events here. As for London and Great Britain as a whole, it looks as if they are not suffering so much from the effects of the so-called climate change. Note that the country still has lush and thick forests, its countryside is covered with greenery, and the rivers and lakes are not polluted. Maybe that is why they have also been spared from the calamities our country, and all those other with bald mountains and denuded forests, are suffering.

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The appeals for more spectators must have worked very well. Now it can be seen that the Olympic stands are always full when games are being played. But there must be a reason for those times when there are lots of empty seats. Since some events are held outdoors – like the boat races – people go to watch them and therefore cannot be in the stadium. But it is good to see that the awarding of medals take place after the winners are known. That gives the winners the proper amount of attention that they would not get if the medals were handed out all together at the close of the meet. It is very interesting to watch the expressions and body language of the winners, especially when their national anthem is being played. A very young gold medalist from Lithuania was so moved, she was crying all the time while waiting for her medal. It is very clear what all those participants mean when they say that just being there in that historic place and event, is truly “magical”.*

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