NAKHON RATCHASIMA – All 88 Filipino athletes have gone through the compulsory classification process and are raring to plunge into action as curtains rise for the fourth Asean Para Games today at the main stadium here.
The RP contingent joins 10 other countries in the opening rites of the biennial games which get underway with the theme “Friendship, Equality and Opportunity.”
RP chef de mission Ral Rosario, Philspada head Mike Barredo and sports commissioner Eric Loretizo lead the RP athletes during the parade, wearing their blue and white track suits.
“Everybody’s excited to be in the parade. Everybody is looking forward to that,” said Rosario, heading the RP contingent which was the first to check in at the Athletes Village inside the sprawling Suranaree University of Technology compound.
“Everything’s going smoothly for us. We hope it goes better in the coming days,” said Rosario.
Loretizo, Barredo and Rosario also led the RP contingent during the flag-raising ceremony at the Athletes Village.
PSC commissioner Ambrocio de Luna is expected to join the delegation in the next few days.
The Filipinos start their campaign tomorrow in athletics, badminton, boccia, chess, fencing, powerlifting, shooting, swimming, table tennis and wheelchair basketball.
The RP team, considered the best the country has ever assembled, is seeing action in 12 of 14 sports disciplines.
The Philippines could get its first gold medals in track and field and swimming with thrower Jerico Openia, runner Isidro Vildosola and tanker Daniel Damaso back to defend titles they won in the 2005 Manila Para Games.
Openia ruled the discus throw and shot put events, Vildosola topped the 1,500m and 800m runs while Damaso triumphed in the 200m freestyle in swimming.
Rosario said the country also has a good chance of winning the gold in tennis, chess, swimming, wheelchair basketball and powerlifting.
Champion powerlifter Adeline Dumapong-Ancheta, the chess duo of Sander Severino and Henry Lopez and the table tennis tandem of Josephine Medina and Minnie de Ramos spearhead RP’s bid to duplicate, if not match, its performance in Manila where it finished sixth with 22 gold, 42 silver and 40 bronze medals.
The hosts are fielding the biggest delegation with 291. athletes that should make them the favorites to clinch a third straight overall championship.
The Malaysians, the first edition champions, entered 187 athletes while the Vietnamese have 133 athletes.