Tokyo 2020 Day 1 and 2 Highlights

Tokyo 2020 Day 1 and 2 Highlights

Miggy Dumlao • July 26, 2021

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics finally went underway with the opening ceremony on July 23. After a year's wait due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the best athletes have arrived to compete and attempt to bring glory to their nations.


Of around 11,500 athletes competing in the 329 medal events of 33 sports this Olympics, the Philippines sent 19 of our finest to compete and show the world our mettle. Our 19 athletes have the backing of some of the loudest fans in the world and Filipinos everywhere are sure to support our athletes no matter what.


Day 1 and 2 was a mixed bag of surprising setbacks as well as convincing wins by our athletes. Here are the highlights from the first weekend of the Olympics for the Philippine delegation.

Day 1

Kurt Barbosa crashes out to first seeded Korean jin


Kurt Barbosa had a tough draw going up against top seeded Jang Jun of Korea, losing in their round of 16 bout in the men’s 58 kg category by a score of 26-6.


Barbosa still had a chance to battle for the bronze medal through the repechage stage if Jun secured a spot in the gold medal match however the Korean suffered an upset loss to 12th seed Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi of Tunisia.


With the Korean’s loss, Barbosa was the first Filipino to be eliminated from Tokyo. Despite this, the Abra native is thankful for the opportunity to compete and his eyes are sure to be set on making it to Paris 2024.


Remedy Rule fails to make the semifinals of women's 100m butterfly, still has a chance in the 200m


Swimmer Remedy Rule competed in the women’s 100m butterfly event but her time was not enough to qualify for the semifinals. She finished with a time of 59.68 in her heat, ending up 25th overall nine places off the top 16 who qualified for the next round.


Nesthy Petecio dominates her opponent, advances to next round


Boxer Nesthy Petecio ground down her first round opponent en route to a unanimous decision victory. Petecio defeated Congolese Marcelat Sakobi Matshu in their women’s featherweight bout with the judges scoring the match 30-27, 30-27, 29-28, 30-27, 30-27.


With the win, Petecio advances to the round of 16.


Carlos Yulo fails to advance in the floor event, qualifies for vault finals


With heightened expectations due to being one of the faces of the Philippine delegation, gymnast Carlos Yulo’s scores can be viewed as a disappointment for the 1st ever Filipino gold medalist in the World Artistic Gymnastic Championships.


Yulo finished 44th in his signature event of floor exercise receiving a score of 13.566. His aggregate score of 79.931 also placed him far from the qualifying spots for the all-around finals.


All is not lost however as Yulo finished 6th in vault and he advances to compete in the finals of the said apparatus. It is also important to note that with all Yulo has already accomplished, he is only 21 years old and has a bright future still to come in his sport.


Here are Carlos Yulo’s scores:

Rings- 14.000 (24th)

Vault - 14.766 (6th)

Parallel Bars - 13.466 (55th)

Horizontal Bars - 12.300 (63rd)

Floor Exercise - 13.566 (44th)

Pommel Horse - 11.833 (69th)

Total: 79.931 (47th)

Day 2

Filipino Shooter fails to advance to finals


Jayson Valdez failed to qualify for the finals of the men’s 10m air rifle event after finishing with 612.6 total points in the qualifying event. Valdez’s score was enough for 44th out 47 competitors with only the top eight set to compete in the finals.


Valdez scored 101.3 points in the first round, 100.5 in the second, 101.6 in the third, 103.6 points in the fourth, 103.5 in the fifth, and 102.1 in the sixth and final round.


Nievarez no longer in medal contention, will compete for final placing


Rower Cris Nievarez finished 5th in his quarterfinals race with a time of 7:50:74. That time was not enough with only the top 3 of each race advancing to the semifinals A/B where potential medalists will compete.


Nievarez’s Olympic journey is not yet over as he is set to compete in the semifinals C/D to fight for his overall placing.


Irish Magno joins fellow boxer, scores unanimous decision


Irish Magno, lands a spot in the round of 16 of the women’s flyweight round with a unanimous decision win over Kenyan Christine Ongare. Magno joins fellow boxer Neshty Petecio who beat her own opponent the day before.


Magno dominated her opponent and judges agreed, scoring the match 30-26, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27.


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Philippine men’s curling team celebrates after winning historic first ever Southeast Asia’s gold medal in winter games.
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David Lappartient (left) and Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham "Bambol" Tolentino (right)
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Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham "Bambol" Tolentino
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January 21, 2025
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January 20, 2025
THE country is fielding a 20-athletes team to the ninth edition of the Asian Winter Games that China is hosting for the third time from February 7 to 14 in the winter resort city of Harbin. The mission? To start setting the stage for a first-ever Winter Olympics medal for the Philippines. “We’ve already accomplished the dream in the Summer Olympics—three gold medals in consecutive games,” said Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino on New Year’s Day Wednesday. “And that dream we want to also achieve in the Winter Olympics.” There are no available accurate records as to how many Filipino winter sports athletes competed in the first eight editions of the Asian Winter Games, but Tolentino believed the team to Harbin should be the biggest thus far. “And our athletes are competing in six of the 11 sports on the Harbin program,” Tolentino said. Curling, now one of the most-watched winter sports discipline, will have the most number of athletes in Harbin with 10 athletes— Marc Angelo Pfister, Enrico Gabriel Pfister, Christian Patrick Haller, Alan Beat Frei, Jessica Pfister, Benjo Delarmente, Kathleen Dubberstein, Leilani Dubberstein, Sheila Mariano and Anne Marie Bonache. The Curling Winter Sports of the Philippines was established late last year to organize the discipline’s ranks with the new group joining Philippine Skating Union and Philippine Ski and Snowboarding Association in the POC roster. The other members of Team Philippines managed by chef de mission Richard Lim are Paolo Borromeo, Aleksandr Korovin, Cathryn Limketkai, Isabella Marie Gamez and Sofia Lexi Jacqueline Frank in figure skating; Francis Ceccarelli and Talullah Proulx in Alpine skiing; Laetaz Amihan Rabe in freestyle skiing; Peter Joseph Groseclose in short track speed skating and Adrian Tongco in snowboarding Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo won the Philippines’ first Summer Olympics gold medal in Tokyo 2020 and gymnast Carlos Yulo captured two gold medals in Paris 2024, both under Tolentino’s watch at the POC. “The Winter Olympics are as extremely tough as the Summer Olympics, but we have proven that it could be done,” Tolentino vowed. Italy will host the 25th edition of the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo from February 6 to 22 next year. Sixty-four events will be contested in Harbin, which was host in 1996, the second time after Changchun 2007 where China first organized the games.  Japan has been the dominant team in the games, followed by China and Kazakhstan.
April 22, 2024
Cignal TV and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) are joining forces for the official launch of Isang Daang Taon Laban Para sa Bayan: Celebrating 100 Years of Filipino Excellence in the Olympics. The campaign will kick off the country’s campaign for the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics where the Philippines is seeking to snare medals and achieve more glory in France. “Cignal TV has always believed in the skills and talent of the Filipino athlete and this partnership only reiterates our commitment to them. We want them to know that we’re with them every step of the way,” said Cignal TV and MediaQuest President & CEO Jane J. Basas. “We’re honored to have Cignal TV be our gracious partner for the Paris-bound athletes and this early, we have high hopes of another memorable showing in the Olympics,” said POC President Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino. This isn’t just any other Olympics for the Philippines as this also marks 100 years of participation for the country in the quadrennial meet. Runner David Nepomuceno was the first Filipino to qualify for the Olympics, participating in the 1924 Paris Games. A century later, the country is banking on our proud representatives spearheaded by pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena, gymnast Carlos Yulo, weightlifter Vanessa Sarno, and boxers Eumir Marcial and Nesthy Petecio as Team Philippines once again tests itself with the best athletes in the globe. From the buildup in their preparations and training, their respective campaigns, and the aftermath of their performance, Cignal TV will be there chronicling the journey of the Filipino athlete through our comprehensive news coverage which will be aired and featured on the various MediaQuest platforms, primarily on Cignal TV platforms including Free-to-Air and Pay TV, and on digital and social media through One Sports, One News, and News5. The Philippines is coming off a historic performance in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics where Hidilyn Diaz became the country’s first ever gold medalist, with Petecio also taking home silver, and Marcial and Carlo Paalam bagging bronze medals.
October 1, 2023
Ernest John "EJ" Obiena gave the whole nation hope as he claimed the first gold medal for the Philippines in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. Obiena's remarkable journey unfolded at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Stadium, where he dazzled with a record-smashing performance in the pole vault finals. The anticipation was palpable as Obiena soared to an astonishing 5.75 meters, leaving his competitors in awe. Yet, he wasn't done there. In a breathtaking display, he shattered the Asian Games record of 5.7 meters and secured the gold with a spectacular 5.9-meter leap, igniting celebrations among Filipino supporters in the stands, including Philippine Olympic Committee president Rep. Bambol Tolentino, Chef de Mission Richard Gomez, and athletics' chief Terry Capistrano. In a heartwarming gesture, Obiena attempted to break his own Asian record of 6 meters, aiming to gift his coach, Vitaly Petrov, a fitting birthday present. Though he narrowly missed this feat, his outstanding achievement marked a historic moment for Philippine athletics. This victory was the Philippines' first gold medal in athletics in 37 years since Lydia de Vega's 100-meter triumph at the Seoul Asiad. It also represented the first athletics medal in 29 years, dating back to Elma Muros' bronze in the long jump at the 1994 Hiroshima Games. Obiena's remarkable journey has made him a superstar and a source of inspiration for his fellow athletes. His training partners, including China's Huang Bokai and Saudi Arabia's Hussain al Hizam, acknowledged his immense contributions to their progress and expressed their desire to challenge him in the future. Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham Bambol Tolentino summed up the nation's sentiments, stating, "EJ never ceases to amaze us." Obiena's extraordinary achievement in pole vaulting has left an indelible mark on Asian Games history, and his gold medal is a testament to the dedication and perseverance of an athlete who has truly reached the sky's limit.
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