Why the recently concluded Tokyo Olympics is a beacon of hope for Southeast Asia
A South African Theologian named Desmond Tutu once said, “Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.”
As the recently concluded 2021 Tokyo Olympics came to a close, with the usual suspects, USA, China, Russia, and Great Britain atop once more, one would most likely consider this Olympic stint another subpar year for Southeast Asian Nations. But in retrospect, it actually wasn’t.
A year of firsts for ASEAN
For the first time in the country’s history, the Philippines was able to bring home a gold medal that came from the women’s 55-kilogram weightlifting division, all thanks to Hidilyn Diaz and her team. She had the daunting task of overcoming China’s Liao Qiuyun who won three different gold medals all in 2019. For a country with practically no sporting events being held due to the government’s terrible covid response, Hidilyn’s triumph opened so many doors for future aspiring athletes, especially women. She made the Filipino worth believing in and worth supporting. Simply put, she was our light in the dark.
Departing from probably the worst year this century has witnessed in 2020, this was the first time for most countries under ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), if not all, to actually be able to watch and support their athletes in what seemed to be forever. Credit must be given to the Olympic committee and hosts, Japan, for being able to pull it off despite the recent surge of cases in the country. The Coronavirus has taken so much from all of us, from jobs, to memories, our loved ones, and even our own sanity; a year and a half of practically being stuck at home to be exact. Despite the lack of support and presence from fans in the stands, the return of sports will forever be a fresh sight to behold.
A brief recap
ASEAN consists of 11 countries, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. In totality, Southeast Asia was able to garner a combined 13 medals, three golds, four silvers, and six bronze medals out of the 173 fielded athletes. Although it was five less than 2016’s showing in Rio, there’s no denying that it is still a feat to be proud of, considering that the virus put a halt and continues to put a halt in almost all sporting events in these nations.
The three golds each came from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Indonesia’s Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu won the women’s doubles for badminton, defeating China’s Jia Yifan and Chen Qingchen in two sets. For the Philippines, Hidilyn Diaz brought home the country’s first-ever gold in any sport since the country’s first participation 97 years ago, winning by a mere kilogram against Liao Qiuyun in weightlifting. And finally, from being down one point with over 30 seconds to spare, Panipak Wongpattanakit topped the women’s taekwondo 49-kilogram division with a come from behind victory, 11–10, over Spaniard, Adriana Cerezo.
The remaining ten medals were comprised of four silvers and six bronzes with Indonesia chipping in four, Malaysia with two, three from the Philippines, and one from Thailand. Three of Indonesia’s four came from weightlifting courtesy of Yuli Irawan, Rahmat Erwin Abdullah, and Windy Cantika Aisah, while the last came from Anthony Ginting in badminton once again but in the singles division this time around. For the Philippines, all three medals came from boxing courtesy of two silvers from Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam, and a bronze from Eumir Marcial. Malaysia each bagged a silver and a bronze in cycling keirin and men’s doubles in badminton, courtesy of Azizulhasni Awang, Aaron Chia, and Soh Wooi Yik. Lastly, Thailand’s lone medal bronze came in women’s boxing courtesy of Sudaporn Seesondee when she came up short against eventual champion, Kellie Harrington.
Looking ahead to Paris 2024
As the Delta Variant continues to loom and haunt the entire world, and as cases continue to pile up, especially in Southeast Asia which comprises about four percent of the global 203 million total cases, all we can really do is really hope for the best as vaccine rollouts continue to be administered left and right.
Leading the region, Indonesia has listed 3,690,000 cases followed by the Philippines’ 1,670,000; and yet these two countries garnered the most medals in Tokyo, how ironic. Imagine how much more improved they, along with the nine remaining countries, would be in three years’ time when the situation finally settles, and when herd immunity is finally achieved.
Hopefully, sporting events are able to return sooner than later, for this has stunted the growth of all athletes from all levels and age groups because nothing beats actual face-to-face training and competition. All we can really do right now is cherish these monumental victories, these life-giving moments in such dark times. To quote author Karen White, “Sometimes hope is all we have, and to lose that is to lose all.”
