Gymnast Carlos Yulo brought home 2 Olympic Gold Medals for the country and a worthy heroes welcome was made for our golden boy, 2 of our bronze boxer medalists Nesthy Petecio, Aira Villegas, and our hard working Olympians this week.
While the whole country celebrates, part of the media noise that was hounding Yulo's win was about his family, his Mom's press conference and previous statements on social media. Mogul and former Ilocos Sur Governor Chavit Singson recently pronounced his offer of over 5 Million pesos, to be accepted by Carlos' family, and his partner, together.
The former governor expressed that this reward is not solely about his recent medals but an offer for the unity of the Yulo family. He says "This reward I hope would be a message for the people that stand by them, those that offer love, their guidance and support."
He also wants this to be an inspiration for Filipino families to do the same, to become the needed support if they're overcoming challenges or winning in life.
Carlos Yulo just made the impossible, possible as he makes a Gold Medal feat out of Gymnastics Floor Exercise and Vault events at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Truly, he's an athlete to be inspired from because this wasn't something that was achieved overnight, but something that he has worked hard for over decades.
It was so nostalgic seeing him as a kid training for his dream of getting a gold medal for the Southeast Asian Games, and I'm sure he's gotten a ton of that already. We were all getting little to no sleep just to get a glimpse of what he was doing at the Bercy Arena. Needless to say, he has made history!
DigiPlus and ArenaPlus had him as a brand ambassador. Prior to him leaving the country, they got him a proper send off where he said "Thank you for the recognition and your eagerness to support me. I promise to do my best, and I am truly grateful for your support and need your prayers for all participating Filipino athletes in the Olympics!"
DigiPlus Chairman Eusebio Tanco wished Carlos to continue to have that "astig" Filipino spirit. He also added how proud he is of Caloy's feat to represent the country and DigiPlus. They also wanted to express their huge congratulations to the Filipino Golden Boy and would want to celebrate it by giving him Php 5 Million for his hard work and dedication to the sport.
They wish this would help fund his future training, to hone not just his skills but his fellow gymnasts, and countrymen whom he has inspired by doing the impossible, possible!
He surely will have tons of people waiting for him once he lands on the airport. Congratulations Carlos Yulo! Your DigiPlus, ArenaPlus family, and the whole Philippines is proud of you!
Hearing Maxine Esteban's achievements during a small talk a few weeks ago made much of us feel like we didn't do much in school. She was that smart, talented and crazy good. She's a breath of fresh air, who didn't want to dwell on issues. She's mighty proud of what she's accomplished as an Olympian, a severely brilliant Fencer, and Filipino.
She's taking Management Engineering in Ateneo, one of the most difficult courses to boot but she manages to still attend regular classes despite training schedules and tournaments. She tells us "I used to be an Ice Skater but the skating rink in Megamall closed. The one in Mall of Asia was too far from where I lived, so I tried to find a sport that would pique my interest. I tried Taekwondo, Swimming, tried almost all the sports, but ended up not liking it except Fencing. I really loved it because it was really fun and taught me how to mix having a grace of a woman and the strength of a man. That's what I really liked about it."
With a very strong academic background, she didn't feel pressured to do all these things. Her parents encouraged her to master musical instruments and a sport, but didn't forget to let her excel in academics. She had only wished to make her parents proud which is why she's gotten to achieve much even at a young age. There's so much sacrifice she had to endure in Fencing, after getting surgery, she had to bounce back and wanted to represented the country. Now with Ivory Coast, she won't be wasting her exceptional talent and younger years as the sport requires that much skill in winning competitions and games.
Maxine with her supportive parents, with her Dad as her DOTA coach at home
She's currently still preparing for the PARIS 2024 Olympics slated to start this July 26 which is almost a month from now. She's in Germany and plans to stay there for training and a few competitions in Europe until the day comes. She is also set to join the African championships on June 6th in Morocco. Then will go to training camps in Poland, Hungary, then train with the Japanese and French national teams til the games commence.
Ivory Coast reminds her much of Filipinos. She laments "They were all so welcoming and sweet because when I arrived at the airport, all of my teammates were there carrying flowers. They remind me so much of my mates in the Philippine national team whom I'm very close with. Personality wise, it wasn't a hard adjustment. There's always going to be the Filipino inside of me, I'm the one that complains to organizers if I don't see the country's flag. When I win competitions in the past, my eyes light up seeing them raise it, doing the country proud! Those simple things, you can't remove that from me. I now have the support from Ivory Coast and the Philippines, and it really means a lot to me."
As for battling a Filipino Fencer, she thinks there wouldn't be an instance to do that. She knows how talented the Philippine team is, but if it happens she's going to do her best too. Her current coach is Andrea Magro, a prolific former coach of the Italian Fencing Team, and already produced 10 Olympic Gold Medalists on his roster. He's now training Maxine Esteban with the best ones in the world and he's raring to see her do the same in Paris. Andrea dubbed Maxine as like an agile Tiger, we couldn't agree more!
Maxine laughed when I asked her for plans to join show business because she looks so pretty. She's a what you see is what you get kind of girl. She's open for sports related sponsorships though and would prefer that instead. She's now affiliated with Anta, and wearing them with confidence too.
Here's our interview with her a few days ago:
She adds "Going to the Olympics, I just want to enjoy the moment because this is my first one. I just want to make my parents and everyone who believes in me proud. There's not much pressure in me, and I think that's a good thing. My parents have been my biggest supporters ever since, even before Fencing. In every sport that I try to do, they would also encourage me. They would never really put pressure and always ask that I just do my best. That's already enough for them, my Dad had a video on ABSCBN when I lost a match and he told me not to worry about it, because they will always love me no matter what."
Her story is truly inspiring. As of now, she is ready for the PARIS 2024 Olympics, and hope YOU are just as proud of her as a Filipino! Make sure you root for her on social media, in person (if you can), because at the end of the day, she is Filipino and proud!
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