MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has rewarded the 22 Filipino athletes who represented the country in the just-concluded Paris Olympics in Paris, France.
In a speech at Malacañan Palace on Tuesday night, Marcos said the Philippine Amusements and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) will give each athlete P1 million, which his office will match, while their coaches will be given P500,000.
This is on top of the P20 million that gymnast Carlos Edriel Yulo will receive for his two-gold medal feat and the P2 million each that boxers Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas will get for their bronze medal finishes, as mandated under Republic Act (RA) 10699.
“So lahat ng athletes natin, basta nag-Olympics, bigyan natin ng tig-iisang milyon di ba (PAGCOR)? Ima-match pa ng Office of the President ‘yung ibibigay ninyo para at least may P2 million (bawat athletes),” he said.
President Marcos added: “Bukod pa doon, dahil sa aking pangingilala sa lahat ng mga tumulong, ‘yung mga coaching staff bibigyan din natin ng kalahating milyon bawa’t isa.”
The President said he is proud of the performance of each and every athlete who competed in the Summer Games, which he personally watched even on the wee hours of the night.
“Pinapaganda ninyo at pinapatingkad ninyo ang pangalan ng Pilipino at kaya naman eh nagpapasalamat sa inyo,” Marcos said. “Lahat naman kami dito ipinagdarasal namin kayo.”
“Isa lang ang reklamo ko sa inyong lahat at napuyat ako ng…dalawang linggo akong napuyat para manood ng mga sari-saring mga events, but ‘yung puyat ko worth it na worth it dahil talagang napakagandang panoorin kayo,” he added.
President Marcos also called on the athletes and their coaches to tell the government what help they can offer during their preparation and while competing in international events.
“I want to ask the coaches and the athletes, our sports organizations, imbes na maglalabas kami ng cash, although maglalabas kami ng cash and find some more, I think, more importantly, I want to be part of the development of sports in the Philippines,” Marcos said.
“If you can consider all of these athletes who have done so well, who have made us so proud, there is no official, technical support from the government, they did it on their own, pero walang pormal na istruktura para tulungan ‘yung ating mga atleta and that’s what we are going to establish now,” he added./PN
