JAKARTA — For Philippine Olympic Committee president Ricky Vargas, the 18th Asian Games here was quite an experience.
He was with the Filipino athletes celebrating their victories and triumphs, and he was with them in defeats, setbacks and losses.
Random thoughts swirled on his mind as he witnessed firsthand the country’s athletes perform, compete and battle in his first Asian Games as the POC chief.
In the pre-departure at the JKT Airport on his way back to Manila Sunday, he put on his tablets his thoughts:
“I realize that despite the improved performance, there are so many things that we still need to do.
“By all indications, the 2018 Asian Games was a success for Team Philippines, e.g total medal count improved, gold count quadrupled, ranking went up from 22nd to 19th (although short of the goal of 15th, but still acceptable).
“It is obvious that grassroots development and talent identification have to be ramped up. The emergence of young talent in these Games points to the fact that fresh young faces with boundless energy, fierce determination and gung-ho spirit are coming to the fore. We need to find more of them.
“Then there are medal-rich sports which we need to focus on, such as aquatics and athletics. Our neighboring countries are killing us in these arenas.
“NSAs (national sports associations) need to clean up their act. We cannot allow bickering and power struggles to weigh down our athletes’ efforts. NSAs must foster inclusivity, transparency and accountability.
“Cooperation with the PSC is vital. This is a no brainer. The relationship must be enhanced.
“Partnership with the private sector is also essential. We are not a rich country and government can only do so much.
“Sports needs to be brought back to cabinet-level in government.
“We need to work on having Asian, regional as well as Olympic sports taught and played in schools.
“Improve training facilities is another “must do.”
“Coaches development should be given impetus.
“We need to look at improving in sports that we can be competitive in: shooting, archery, bowling, etc., even basketball which our people love.
“In the end, it’s all about the athlete. Train them well, provide them needs, keep them motivated, inspired and focused and shield them from politics. They can and will deliver.
“Mabuhay ang Atletang Pilipino!”