Lifting a nation’s hopes for an Olympic gold

Hidilyn Diaz spent one evening training at the weightlifting room of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex using equipment that not only helped her make a career-changing moment in the last Olympic Games but also gave her a sense of doing more for Philippine sports.

Diaz had expressed concern over the use of the old facility last January, citing it in a tweet as a reason why the country has yet to produce a gold medal in the Olympics.

“Nagtataka pa ba tayo bakit hanggang ngayon wala pa tayong gold medal sa Olympics? (Don't you wonder why we still have no Olympic gold?)," Diaz tweeted. “Sabi ni coach, 1990 pagpunta niya dito sa Manila ganito na ang gym hanggang ngayon ganito parin. (Our old gym hasn't changed).”

The 27-year-old Zamboangueña later said her responsibility grew bigger almost two years after overcoming the odds to produce a silver medal at the Rio Olympics, the first medal the Philippines got since boxer Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco's similar feat in Atlanta in 1996.

“Gusto ko lang ipakita yung pangangailangan namin as athletes, then also what can we contribute as athletes to the community and what sports can do to me as a simple person, and maybe to the whole country, di ba?” Diaz said.

This new role was something Diaz didn't expect a decade earlier, when she made her Olympic debut as a teenager competing in the 2008 Beijing Games where she hardly contended for a medal in the 58-kg class.

Diaz served as the country's flag bearer four years later in London, but three failed attempts in the clean and jerk category left her heartbroken. Later struggles such as the failure to qualify for the 2014 Asian Games made her contemplate retirement, though it turned out to be a stretch that set her up for bigger things.

The Olympic silver that glittered like gold made Diaz a well-known figure upon returning to Manila. She received financial rewards, signed endorsement deals, got a scholarship to study at College of St. Benilde, appeared in public events, her life portrayed in an episode of Maalala Mo Kaya and became one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardee in 2017.

Having a bigger platform now and the obstacles she endured prompted Diaz to do a more active role.

“Ang inisip ko noon nung nasa Rio Olympics ako is manalo lang e. (All I was thinking in Rio was to win),” Diaz said. “But hindi e, mas malaki yung naging responsibilidad ko as an athlete. (I had a bigger responsibility as an athlete).

“Kasi siyempre ako yung parang hinuhugutan ng lakas at inspiration ng mga bata, tapos ako mismo hindi nagbo-voice out para sa mga athlete, parang pinapakita ko sa kanila na quitter ako which is hindi siya magandang ehemplo para sa mga bata. (They draw inspiration from me).

“As an athlete, we have the right and sports, hindi siya magiging sports kung walang naglalaro so we're the ones who compete there, and we know di ba dapat well-deserved ang suporta naming mga atleta?” she added.

Diaz was recently named alongside triathlete Nikko Huelgas to head the athletes' commission of the Philippine Olympic Committee shortly after boxing chief Ricky Vargas' election as president. While still in the process of figuring things out in the commission, Diaz is eyeing bigger hopes for athletes in the long run.

“Yung gusto ko makita (in the future) is for athletes na maging next leaders sa Philippine sports,” Diaz said. “Sana mainclude sila sa program, yung leadership training for athletes and coaches, para may mga alam din yung mga coaches and athletes. (I want to see athletes as future sports leaders).”

For now, Diaz has taken steps in being more than just an athlete.

She used the money earned from her Olympic silver to built her dream weightlifting facility in her hometown, had held the Hidilyn Diaz Weightlifting Open Championships with the goal of eventually giving the sport a chance to be showcased in the Palarong Pambansa and major collegiate leagues.

Diaz also is trying to spread the gospel of weightlifting to the rest of the country. She recently joined an outreach project organized by St. Benilde for the Aeta community in Porac, Pampanga, an event Diaz had shared through a vlog (video blog).

“Gusto ko pakita that weightlifting could be shared by everyone, hindi lang para sa iisang tao, o kay Hidilyn Diaz lang, kundi sa bawat rehiyon ng bansa,” Diaz said.

While still training in the dingy room in preparation for her gold medal bid in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Diaz can only hope that many things in Philippine sports will change for the better soon.

And along with it, the weightlifting room at Rizal Memorial.

I want to see athletes become future sports leaders in the country.

— Hidilyn Diaz