Gold Medal In Play As Diaz, Didal See Action

A four-time Olympic warrior, steep in discipline and a product of rigorous indoor training, and a young upstart, a street-instructed rising star, will take their quest in the XXXII Olympiad to the highest level of sports excellence when they kick off their events Monday with gold medals awaiting if they get pass the gauntlet of world class competition.

- Tito Talao

Hidilyn Diaz, 30, silver medalist in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, debuts in the -55kg category of the weightlifting competition at the Tokyo International Forum, hoping to crown with gold her projected final Olympic Games, a journey that took her to Biejing (2008), London (2012) and Brazil in search of that elusive gold medal.

“This would be her swan song,” said weightlifting chief Monico Puentevella. “And her crowning glory. She has paid her dues and has nothing more to prove.”

Except the business of winning for the country its first-ever gold.

But the road to the gold won’t be rosy.

In her path is Chinese world record holder Liao Qiuyun of China, who has been tagged as the lifter to beat in the Games.

Events will be in snatch, and clean and jerk.

Over at the Ariake Urban Sports Park, skateboard impresario Margielyn Didal, 22, intends to put on a show in the street category event, something she did when she rose to fame after winning the gold medal with bold and innovative routines in the Palembang Asian Games in 2018.

The Games will be a stage grander than anything else she has conquered though.

“The Olympics has a bigger field of play, Iba siya from others at kumpleto talaga,” said Carl Sembrano, president of Skateboard Pilipinas Sunday morning on the eve of Didal’s competition.

“Dati 2 to 3 rails, yung me steps, now 6 rails, may flat and round, variety talaga. Kumbaga, dati half court lang, ngayon buo na. ”