The 11-member Catanduanes delegation to the recent Batang Pinoy Philippine Youth Games may have brought back two bronze medals but it came at a huge cost.
The young athletes – sprinter Jehjireh Alcantara and boxers Jojie Rima, Archie Subion II, Dithrone Subion and Yurrico Subion – arrived in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan on Nov. 22 together with coaches Archie Subion, Ariel Camacho, John Brian Mari Basinio and Reygan Icaranom, deputy delegation head Dave Tolentino who is the Provincial Youth Development Officer, and delegation head Edwin Gianan.
After an overland trip from Virac to Manila and a commercial flight to Palawan, the 11-member team settled in their billeting quarters at the Loreto Santos Lanzanas Central School in the city center.
They were supposed to fly to Manila on the 27th and be home the next day but they learned upon arrival that the organizers had scheduled the 100-meter dash on the 27th at 10:30 AM, quashing the hopes of the athlete and his coach to board the flight.
On the second day, Nov. 25, Alcantara won bronze in the long jump event with a leap of 6.48 meters, missing the silver medal by just one centimeter.
All the boxers were expected to lose in the elimination phase that ended Nov. 26, with the three Subion brothers defeated, two of them via questionable split decisions.
However, Pandan’s Rima won his fight and moved to the medal round passed their respective weigh-ins, with the youngest of them advancing to the next round via bye.
This meant they had to wait for the bout to be finished and if he advances to fight for the gold, the boxing team would forfeit their non-refundable plane tickets for the 27th along with the rest of the delegation.
Rima lost by split decision and the boxing team managed to board their flight to Manila the next day, leaving behind the delegation head, sprinter Alcantara and coach Icaranom as they had to wait for the 100-meter dash finals.
Alcantara topped his heat or qualification run in the morning and thus qualified for the finals at 3 PM. Among the top 8 runners who made it, he was just 0.03 second behind the 2nd fastest qualifier and had a real chance for a medal.
The Pandan runner delivered, winning the bronze for his second in the Batang Pinoy youth games.
With the trio stranded in Palawan, Gianan tried to secure a ticket on the 2GO ferry for Manila but the only available slots were on the Dec. 1 trip that will take 26 hours to complete.
On the other hand, the earliest available flight out of the island that could be secured by the provincial government was on Dec. 3 or 4, meaning they would have to stay at the school quarters for three more days and find another place to stay for two more days and spend for their necessities on their own.
Aside from the transportation costs, the provincial government reportedly shouldered the delegation members’ travel allowance for eight days and the athletes’ training allowance for one month.
Fortunately, the group was assisted by personnel of Ocean Aquamarine Products Enterprises (OAPE) whse warehouse was just across the road from the school.
They were likewise visited by some Catandunganons based in Palawan, including an engineer from Gigmoto and his brother-in-law who gave the team P9,000 for food expenses and introduced them to other fellow Catandunganons residing in the city.
The remaining members of the team were treated to dinner by Engr. Mark Tatad and other Gigmotenos who have settled in Puerto Princesa City.
Gianan, Alcantara and coach Icaranom are due to arrive in Virac today, Dec. 4.