Diaz, PH Tokyo Olympic medalists get P22M from San Miguel chief

Weightlifting’s Hidilyn Diaz (gold), boxing’s Nesthy Petecio (silver), Carlo Paalam (silver) and Eumir Marcial (bronze). AFP FILE PHOTOS

The head of the country’s largest conglomerate will give Tokyo Olympics medalists — led by the country’s very first gold medal winner, weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz — a total of P22 million in incentives for accomplishing the Philippines’ best performance in 97 years of competing at the quadrennial sports competition.

In a statement, San Miguel Corp. said the personal gift of its president, Ramon Ang, would consist of P10 million for Diaz, P5 million each for boxers Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio for winning silver medals, and P2 million for boxer Eumir Marcial’s broze medal finish.

“As a longtime partner and supporter of Philippine sports, I’m so happy for our athletes. All their hard work paid off,” Ang said. “They’ve opened the eyes of so many Filipinos sports patrons, fans, and aspiring athletes that indeed, we Filipinos can compete and win against the best in the world in the Olympics. This is just the beginning. We have the momentum. We can only get stronger in the succeeding Olympics.”

“I’m especially grateful to Hidilyn, whom we’ve supported for several years now, for giving honor to the country by winning our very first Olympic gold medal,” he added. “We can build on these successes to develop stronger sports programs and produce more Olympic winners like Hidilyn, Carlo, Nesthy and Eumir.”

Ang also said that the Olympic athletes, as well as their coaches and teams, gave the Philippines more than just medals.

“The message of this Olympic campaign for us Filipinos is clear: We are resilient in the face of challenges and we do not back down from adversity. This pandemic is perhaps one of the greatest challenges in our lifetime,” he said.

San Miguel has been a longtime supporter of the country’s participation and hosting of international competitions, including the staging of 2019 Southeast Asian Games. In this SEA Games edition, the Philippines also completed its best performance so far in 42 years of participation with a haul of 149 gold medals, 117 silvers and 121 bronzes.

In 2005, SMC also backed the Philippine team that won the overall championship in the 2005 Southeast Asian Games with 112 golds, 85 silvers and 93 bronzes.

Ang, through San Miguel, is also a major supporter of Philippine Sportswriters Association, a 100-member, 56-year-old association that holds annual awards to honor athletes, coaches, officials and organizations that made a significant impact to Philippine sports.

San Miguel Brewery Inc., is also a consistent supporter of the Sportswriters Association of Cebu Cebu Sports Awards, 37-year old event that recognizes the accomplishments of Cebuano sports personalities.

“Thank you Hidilyn, Carlo, Nesthy and Eumir for giving us hope and inspiration during this critical time,” Ang said. “You showed us that nothing is impossible.”