10 FILIPINO ATHLETES WHO BROUGHT HOME OLYMPIC MEDALS

(SPOT.ph) The Olympics are arguably the most prestigious sporting tournament in the world. With a history that dates back almost three millennia to Athens, Greece, the games decide the who’s who in the world of sports—not to mention the matter of national pride and honor being on the line.

The Philippines has participated in the Olympics since the early 20th century and so far, we’ve managed to bag a total of ten medals from the Summer games, including our very first gold from weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz during the Tokyo Olympics 2021. Plus, we’ve also got a medal from the Youth Olympics. So far, 10 Filipino athletes have managed to score a medal from the Olympics for our country, and we're sure there are countless more vying for a spot on the podium. 

Here are 10 Filipino Olympians who brought home a medal (or two):

Teofilo Yldefonso, swimming: bronze, 1928 and bronze, 1932

Lovingly called the "Ilocano Shark," this swimmer is the first Filipino to win a medal from the Olympic Games—and is also the only Filipino athlete with two to their name. The Olympian was a back-to-back bronze medalist for the men’s 200-meter breaststroke at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam and the 1932 run in Los Angeles. Ydelfonso, who was orphaned at a young age, reportedly taught himself to swim in the Guisit River near his home in Piddig, Ilocos Norte. 

An enlisted personnel of the Philippine Scouts, Yldefonso was forced to join the Bataan Death March in 1942, and ultimately perished in a concentration camp in Capas, Tarlac. It is said that a Japanese soldier, who knew of Yldefonso’s athletic feats, offered to release him, but the swimmer chose to stay with his men. 

Simeon Toribio, high jump: bronze, 1932

Toribio was a proud Boholano who represented the country for the men’s high jump event at the 1928, 1932, and 1936 Summer Olympics. It was at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles that he won a bronze medal—although there are some whispers that he could have struck gold had it not been for an unfortunate call of nature at the worst possible time. Despite settling for third place in the Olympics, Toribio was the undisputed champion at the Far Eastern Games (today’s Asian Games), winning gold from 1291 to 1934.

Toribio narrowly escaped capture by Japanese forces—thanks, in part, to the prestige of his being an athlete—and went on to become a lawyer and politician. An alumnus of the Silliman University, he was the Representative of Bohol from 1941 to 1953, and passed away in 1969.

Jose Villanueva, boxing: bronze, 1932

Boxer Jose "Cely" Villanueva earned a bronze win in the men’s bantamweight class during the 1932 Olympics, rounding out a total of three medals for that year—a feat we’re yet to repeat for the prestigious international meet. Binondo-born Villanueva fought his way to the first-ever boxing medal of the Philippines in what was just the start of our winning streak. 

Villanueva went on to train some of our country’s boxing greats, including Gabriel "Flash" Elorde and his son, Anthony Villanueva, whose name you ought to remember, too, for reasons you’ll see in just a bit. In a bittersweet turn of events, the elder Villanueva passed away after suffering a heart attack, reportedly while watching the famous bout between legendary boxers Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Durán.

Miguel White, hurdling: bronze, 1936

Standing at a proud five-foot-11 inches, hurdler Miguel White was born to a Filipino mother and an American father. He took home a bronze medal for the Men’s 400-meter hurdle at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin—yes, the one with Hitler—and almost slid into second place, had Canadian Jon Loaring not bested his time by a tenth of a second. White clocked in at 52.8, a mere moment slower than Loarings’s 52.7 seconds.

White also joined the Far Eastern games, earning a bronze medal in 1930 and striking gold in 1934. The Olympian enlisted in the Philippine army sometime after his triumphant return from the 1936 Olympics and is believed to have been killed in action during World War II. He was a Lieutenant in the 52nd Infantry Regiment. 

Anthony Villanueva, boxing: silver, 1964

For nearly three decades after White brought home a bronze medal, the Philippines suffered a drought—until boxer Anthony Villanueva ended it with a shiny, silver one. The son of the Olympics' original boxing medalist Jose Villanueva, Anthony settled for second place after being beaten by Russian Stanislav Stepashkin in a controversial 3-2 score that, some say, should have been the country’s first gold.

Villanueva’s grand triumph at the Olympics gave him a short 15 minutes of fame, with a hero’s welcome and even a stint in local movies. But Villanueva eventually fell into obscurity—and the first athlete to ever bring home an Olympic silver medal died quietly in 2014, after having been bedridden for two years. 

Leopoldo Serantes, boxing: bronze, 1988 

Another two decades of drought was ended by boxer Leopoldo Serantes with a bronze medal in the light flyweight division. Serantes’ victory is sandwiched between the Villanueva father-and-son duo and the incoming Velasco brothers, which may explain why his no-less-momentous win is often overlooked. The boxer proved his prowess by ending two of his four Olympic bouts via "referee stopped contest" result, a.k.a. the equivalent of a technical knockout in professional boxing, before bowing out to Bulgaria’s Ismail Mustafov.

Serantes, much like Villanueva, also faded to the background upon his return to the Philippines. He was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and reportedly "turned over" his bronze medal to the Philippine Sports Commission for P30,000. The boxer was thankfully the first beneficiary of the Anthony Villanueva Trust Fund, a project started in honor of the forgotten Villanueva. 

Roel Velasco, boxing: bronze, 1992

Before the younger Mansueto "Onyok" Velasco came punching into the global stage, his brother Roel also snatched a bronze medal in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. The elder Velasco reportedly edged out Onyok for the spot on the official representatives list, and won three straight decision victories before being beaten at the semi-finals by Cuba’s Rogelio Marcelo in a "referee stops contest" victory.

Roel Velasco would go on to win several more medals in global competitions. He earned silver in the 1997 World Championships and was also the first Filipino in the Goodwill Games. Velasco is still very active in the boxing scene, and coached the Philippine boxing team for the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. 

Mansueto "Onyok" Velasco, boxing: silver, 1996

Onyok Velasco cemented our winning streak in boxing with a controversial slide into second place at the 1996 Olympics. Dubbed as the "robbery in Atlanta," his bout against Daniel Petrov Bojilov ended with a 6-19 score in favor of the Bulgarian—in a decision that the entire country is still yet to come to terms with. Onyok was a clear favorite, with his lightning reflexes and solid punches matched by his extreme charisma, the nation felt the gold medal could have—should have—fallen into his hands.

Onyok was given a grand hero’s welcome upon his return, and was also promised a P2.5 million incentive by the government. A decade later, reports turned up saying that the silver medalist is yet to receive the reward in full—we’re not so sure what happened there, but we can only hope Onyok has gotten what was promised.

Also read: Two Filipinas Gave Us Our First Multi-Medal Olympic Win in Nearly a Century

Nesthy Petecio, boxing: silver, 2020

Adding another medal to our chest of Olympic-boxing achievements, and the first woman to do so, is Nesthy Petecio during the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Petecio secured the silver medal after winning against Italy's Irma Testa, and while the whole nation waited to see if she could take home gold, we're more than proud that she made it far enough to challenge first-placer Japan's Sena Irie. 

Petecio's silver win during the Tokyo Olympics broke two droughts. The first is the 25-year wait for another podium finisher in boxing after Onyok Velasco's historic win. Second, her win alongside Hidilyn Diaz' historic gold makes the Tokyo Olympics the first time since 1932 that the Philippines had a multi-medal win at the Olympics. 

Hidilyn Diaz, weightlifting: silver, 2016 and gold, 2020

We know you know her. Hidilyn Diaz won the Philippines our very first Olympic gold during the Tokyo Olympics, and in a traditionally male-dominated sport no less. Diaz lifted a total of 224 kilograms, besting eight other competitors and even breaking the previous record of Liao Qiuyun of China. Diaz came home to the whole nation in celebration, with tons of prizes from both government and private entities to welcome her. 

Tokyo was Diaz's fourth Olympic run—and her second Olympic medal. She also brought home a shiny silver from the 2016 Rio Olympics, where she lifted a total of 200 kilograms and ended a two-decade long medal drought for the Philippines.

Special mention - Christian Tio, kiteboarding: silver, 2018

The Youth Olympics had its first run in 2010 with athletes aged 15 to 18 from all over the world competing for the podium. In the 2018 Buenos Aires run, Filipino-Norwegian Christian Tio snatched our very first Youth Olympics medal: a shiny silver medal in the kiteboarding competition. The then 17-year-old was the sole representative from the Asia and Oceania regions.

Tio was taught how to kiteboard by his mother at just seven years old, and was supposed to train for the Olympics in his hometown of Boracay, but was not able to due to the island’s rehabilitation at the time. Despite the setback, the Red Bull athlete still managed to snatch a silver medal for the Philippines.

2024-07-25T12:15:47Z dg43tfdfdgfd