LIKE the atmosphere around them, some of the 22 Filipino athletes, as well as sports officials, showed up in high spirits during the Paris Olympics opening ceremony early Saturday (Manila time).
In a historic boat parade down the River Seine, Olympic silver medalists Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio proudly waved the giant Philippine flag as they were welcomed by spectators on the banks.
Joining Paalam and Petecio were fencer Samantha Catantan, boxers Hergie Bacyadan and Aira Villegas, swimmers Kayla Sanchez and Jarod Hatch, as well as gymnasts Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo, and Levi Ruivivar, and hurdlers John Cabang and Lauren Hoffman.
PROUD FILIPINOS The members of Team Philippines wave the country’s flag during the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony on July 27, 2024 at the River Seine in Paris, France. PHOTO FROM THE OLYMPIC GAMES X ACCOUNT
They were all smiles; some jumped up and down, waving the Philippine flaglets.
Philippine de chef de mission Jonvic Remulla, Association of the Boxing Alliances in the Philippines (ABAP) Secretary General Marcus Manalo, Philippine rowing President Patrick Gregorio, and Philippine athletics chief Agapito Capistrano were also on the boat, together with the athletes from Poland and Puerto Rico.
Rower Joanie Delgaco and gymnast Carlos Yulo were not on the parade as they were set to hit the ground running for the Philippines’ 100th-year participation in the Games.
Delgaco, the country’s first-ever female rower to make the Olympics, is fittingly the first to see action for the Philippine “Centennial Team.”
She is set to race in the women’s single sculls heat 2 at 4:24 p.m. at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on Saturday.
In the evening, Yulo then competes in the men’s artistic gymnastics individual all-around qualification at the Bercy Arena.
Yulo is in subdivision 2, scheduled to start at 9:30 p.m.
PH team shown on Olympics X handle
The Philippine Olympic team was featured in a post by the official X (formerly Twitter) account of the Olympic Games.
It showed the photo of the 22-strong team with Petecio and Paalam, accompanied by three other scenes during the opening ceremony.
“The world is a stage, and Paris is a catwalk,” the post read.
“The #OpeningCeremony is France’s largest nightclub. Celebrities are showcasing young French designer talent while DJ Barbara Butch provides the tunes. The perfect moment for the last delegations to arrive,” it added.
Some Philippine netizens were thrilled upon seeing the post, especially with the Francis Libiran-designed Sinag barong tagalog athletes wore during the ceremony.
“Amidst all we Filipinos go through daily, I still get goosebumps and am filled with pride watching our flag on the world stage,” wrote @amorisetlegem on X on Saturday.
“Paris fashion and Philippines in one tweet? That barong looks so clean,” wrote @jdcgzm on X.
“You do know how to get high interactions ha!” wrote @brainyoreo on X.
“Thank you for featuring the Philippines!” @walf_ tweeted. “That SINAG ‘barong’ attire was inspired by the sun rays and the colors of our flag. The asymmetric design is peculiar for some, but it’s quite different and stands out!”
“The Philippine Team wearing their Sinag Barong by Francis Libiran. Mabuhay!” wrote @DYOcolateMint.
“I’m a proud Filipino! Look at ’em! Oh, so praying for your success. #Philippines power!” tweeted @donnyscourt.
“Not the official Twitter account of the Olympic Games using Pinoy baiting for clout with the PH delegates’ photo next to that powerful depiction of a religious painting. This ain’t in my bingo card but it’s a win!” tweeted @RaphaFourth, citing that a portion of the ceremony controversially depicted the Leonardo da Vinci painting “The Last Supper” and a photo of it was included in the tweet.
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