FROM CHOMP TO CHAMP
The saga of a cycling queen
Cycling champion Marella Salamat was fond of gorging on whatever food there is, mostly unhealthy, during her younger years.
At age 16, Salamat ballooned to 215lbs, a situation that tempted peers to make fun of her.
“I was also a victim of bullying before because of my weight. I wanted that to change. It was hard at first especially in trying to change my diet,” said Salamat. “I can consume four cups of rice. Favorite ko adobo, burger, and pizza.”
In a lot of ways, Salamat’s passion for eating turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it eventually led her to a sport she was so passionate she would end up becoming one of the country’s sports heroes.
“There came a point that before entering college I wanted to lose weight so nag-enter po ako ng sports, particularly bowling where I achieved some success,” said Salamat. “I tried boxing and running which helped me a lot as soon as nag-cycling ako kasi by that time, nag-tone down na ’yung weight ko.”
During one of her regular rides around the Mall of Asia in 2013, Salamat became curious about a group of serious cyclists who were all ears on their coach who happens to be one of the national team’s guru, Cesar Lobramonte.
“I was the one who approached him and asked him if he can help me improve my skills,” revealed Salamat “Tinanong ko how much ’yung rate nya pero sabi niya wala namang pag-uusapan sa pera basta tignan lang namin kung hanggang saan ang kaya ko.”
Back then, Salamat was starting to enjoy cycling not only because she was losing much weight the healthiest way. She was also enjoying the competitive nature of the sport.
Salamat was eyeing to compete in the tough Vuelta de Dagupan which was to be held in Baguio City but after almost a month of being under Lobramonte’s tutelage, the duo thought it best to forget about the Baguio gig that year.
“Sabi ni coach hindi pa ako ready sa Vuelta so sabi niya, sa Tour of Clark na muna ako sumali which was being held the same time as ’yung sa Baguio,” said Salamat “I almost gave up sa Clark kasi sa isang stage, nagkamali ako sa turn I almost ended up sa ilalim ng isang kotse. But coach told me not to give up. I heeded his advice and I ended up the champion.”
Soon, Lobramonte would bring his vastly improved ward to a tryout with the national team where Salamat was eventually taken in as a regular member.
The Las Piñas-born Salamat got her first biggest break by being the Philippines’ entry to the Individual Time Trial event of the 2015 Southeast Asian Games in Singapore where, as an unheard of rider, shocked pundits by winning the gold, the only medal the country tallied in cycling for that biennial meet.
Just last year, Salamat copped the bronze in the tough World University Cycling Championship held in Tagaytay City.
Now, experts are talking about Salamat being a potential Olympian in the 2020 Tokyo Games.
“Medyo malayo pa sa isip ko ’yun kasi main focus ko is Asian muna. Nakukulangan pa kasi ako sa time ko among Asian contenders,” said Salamat.
Last month, Salamat finished eight overall during the 2017 Asian Cycling tournament in Bahrain but was the fastest among Southeast Asian campaigners.
Salamat who now weighs 120 lbs. is scheduled to compete in next month’s Tour of Thailand, a UCI-sanctioned event where she hopes to gain the needed points and enhance her Olympic aspirations.
Now having a promising future, it would be safe to say that the efforts to become healthy and a be an iconic sports figure were worth the weight for Salamat.