Courtesy: Philippine Olympic Committee
Eight gold medals — that’s the target for Team Philippines at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
In an interview with Sports Radio 918, Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino said the Philippines is entering a modern Asian Games era, with the country capable of improving on its four-gold medal hauls in both the 2018 Jakarta and 2022 Hangzhou editions.
The POC chief believes the combined strength of the country’s athletes in combat and non-combat sports could propel Team Philippines to eight gold medals in Aichi-Nagoya.
“We’re targeting a combination of Palembang and Hangzhou, so that’s four plus four equals eight. So it can be from non-combat sports, four, and four again from combat sports,” said Tolentino.
Should the Philippines reach its target, it would match the country’s gold-medal haul at the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo and surpass the seven-gold output in the 1962 Jakarta Games.
The country’s best-ever Asian Games performance happened at the 1954 Manila edition, where the Philippines captured a record 14 gold medals and finished second overall in the medal standings.
“This is the Olympics of Asia. So, sa modern [era], malagpasan lang natin yung previous records, pag na-doble natin yan, more than seven. Yung modern Asia natin nagsimula sa Seoul noong 1986, so kung anuman yung mga records dun, dapat malampasan na ngayon,” Tolentino said.
The POC chief described the Philippine delegation as a star-studded contingent, highlighting that Filipino athletes are now at the peak of their careers and are ready to deliver their best performance in the Asiad.
“Star-studded ngayon at sobrang handa ang atleta. Yung iba nasa peak age nila, nasa peak career nila yung iba. So madami surprises due to training, support of the government, PSC in particular, and some other private sponsors,” said Tolentino.
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