Twenty-two brave souls competing in nine sports will be carrying the Philippine flag at the 2024 Paris Olympics, which will run from July 26 to August 11.
This will be the country’s largest contingent to the quadrennial spectacle since the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where the Philippines sent 26 athletes in nine sports.
The goal is to surpass the one gold, two silver, and one bronze medal haul in the Tokyo Olympics, which is the country’s best performance in the Olympics thus far.
The question now is – who can deliver the medals this time around for Team Philippines?
Midlife Halftime has identified six athletes as the country’s brightest medal prospects in the Paris Olympics.
Carlos Yulo, Gymnastics
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Carlos Yulo is not only one of the Philippines’ strongest medal contenders but also the only one in a position to bag multiple medals.
The more events one joins, the more chances of winning. This applies to Yulo, who could put himself in a position to win as many as three medals.
After bombing out in the Tokyo Olympics, an older and more mature Yulo is determined to put on a better showing in Paris.
“I want a good performance,” he told Olympics.com. “Of course, a gold medal. I want to win in the floor exercise, vault, also. I’m really shooting for the individual all-around, as well.”
The 24-year-old Yulo is a two-time gold medal winner in the World Championships, winning the floor exercise in 2019 in Stuttgart, Germany, and the vault in 2021 in Kitakyushu, Japan.
Yulo has shown his readiness for Paris by clinching bronze in the floor exercise in this year’s Baku World Cup and a vault silver in the Doha World Cup.
Carlo Paalam, Boxing (Men’s Bantamweight)
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If he can stay healthy, Carlo Paalam could be the country’s brightest hope for a gold medal.
Paalam has faced injury woes in recent months, even withdrawing from the Paris Olympic World Qualification in Busto Arsizio, Italy, due to a shoulder injury.
Four years after settling for silver in the Tokyo Olympics in men’s flyweight, the 26-year-old Paalam has moved up to bantamweight. He has already grown into the bantamweight division, winning gold in the 2022 Asian Championships and the 2023 SEA Games.
Paalam is second in the world rankings, next only to world No. 1 Makhmud Sabyrkhan of Kazakhstan, whom he defeated in the finals of the Asian Championships.
There will be plenty of quality opposition who will give Paalam a run for the gold. These include 2023 World Championship gold medalist Abdumalik Khalokov of Uzbekistan, who also won the 2022 Asian Games gold and the 2022 Asian Championships.
On his way to the Asian Games gold, he prevailed over Paalam via unanimous decision in the quarterfinals.
Nesthy Petecio, Boxing (Women’s Featherweight)
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Sports Illustrated lists current world No. 1 Irma Testa of Italy as the favorite to win the gold in boxing’s women’s featherweight division. Nesthy Petecio edged Testa via split decision in the semifinals of the Tokyo Olympics three years ago.
The path to a second Olympic medal, much less a gold, will not be easy for Petecio, but she remains the best bet among Filipina athletes to deliver a medal in Paris.
Aside from Testa, also standing in Petecio’s way are world No. 2 Karina Ibragimova of Kazakhstan, silver medalist in the 2023 World Championships and the 2022 Asian Games.
Then there’s world No. 3 and Petecio’s old rival Lin Yu-Ting of Chinese Taipei, a two-time winner of the World Championships, two-time Asian Championships gold medalist, and the 2022 Asian Games gold medalist.
The 32-year-old Petecio has already indicated this will be her last Olympics, so expect the Tokyo Olympic silver medalist to leave everything in the ring in her quest to finally clinch the Olympic gold.
Eumir Marcial, Boxing (Men’s Light Heavyweight Division)
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At 28 years old, Eumir Marcial is at the peak of his physical prowess. He will need to outdo himself because, like Paalam, he too will be going up in weight in Paris.
The Zamboanga City native has been fighting for most of his career in the middleweight division, which has a limit of 73 kilograms. He won the bronze in the Tokyo Olympics and the silver in the 2019 World Championships as a middleweight.
This division has been scrapped for Paris, forcing Marcial to go up to light heavyweight, which has a limit of 80 kilograms.
Marcial has already embarked on a professional career, winning his first five bouts. Three of his victories did not need to go to the scorecards.
He will look to infuse what he has learned as a pro into his campaign in Paris, where he will be up against Arlen López Cardona of Cuba, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and the odds-on favorite to win the gold.
EJ Obiena, Men’s Pole Vault
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Months ago, EJ Obiena was largely considered almost a shoo-in for an Olympic medal. However, after Obiena recently revealed that he had been battling injuries and other issues that have derailed his preparations, confidence in his chances of a podium finish has dampened just a bit.
At his best, Obiena is among the top pole vaulters in the world. He won a bronze in the 2022 World Championships and a silver in the 2023 World Championships.
Currently ranked No. 2 in the world, next only to the almost mythical Armand Duplantis of Sweden, Obiena is one of the few pole vaulters in history who has cleared six meters.
There is a belief that Duplantis is already a lock for the gold medal in Paris, barring any major mishap. The real battle will be for the silver, and it will be contested by Obiena, world No. 3 Sam Kendricks and world No. 4 Christopher Nilsen of the United States, world No. 5 Kurtis Marschall of Australia, and world No. 7 American KC Lightfoot.
Vanessa Sarno, Weightlifting (Women’s 71 kg)
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There is a reason why Vanessa Sarno has long been touted as the heir apparent to Hidilyn Diaz.
The 20-year-old native of Bohol is expected to carry the torch for Philippine weightlifting now that Diaz is at the twilight of her long, illustrious career.
Sarno won gold in the 2020 Asian Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, when she was just 16 years old. She bagged the silver in the 2023 edition. At 17 years old, she won her first SEA Games gold in 2021 and then defended the gold in 2023.
Sarno is inching closer to the best in her weight division. She is currently fourth in the world, just outside the top three composed of Olivia Lynn Reeves of the United States, Angie Paola Palacios Dajomes of Ecuador, and Loredana-Elena Toma of Romania.
Her best lift of 249 kilograms is still seven kilos off the best lift of Toma at 256 kilograms, so Sarno will have to find ways to narrow the gap fast for her to catch up with the top three who are predicted to claim podium finishes in Paris.
