Nesthy Petecio only has one goal — and one goal only — on her mind right now: Bag the gold in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
There’s nowhere to go but up, as they say. And that’s exactly where she wants to go following a silver medal finish in the Tokyo Games.
“Isa lang po sasabihin ko: Walang hihinto hangga’t walang ginto,” the eloquent fighter told the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum Tuesday.
Petecio, 29, is nothing short of determined to give the Philippines another gold in sports’ grandest stage after Hidilyn Diaz, the country’s first-ever Olympic champion after reigning supreme in the women’s 55-kg weightlifting.
The 30-year-old, before reaching the pinnacle of success in Tokyo, settled for silver in the previous Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro. And Petecio hopes to have the same fate as Diaz as she sets her sights on Paris.
“Hahabulin kita, Champ Haidie,” the former AIBA world champion told the weightlifting queen with a beam on her face.
Diaz was on the same Forum together with other medalists Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial. And she heard loud and clear what had been told to her.
And as the “ate” of the younger Olympians, the Zamboanga City native expressed her full support to Petecio.
“Sige lang! We have to motivate each other,” said Diaz, who ended the country’s 97-year wait of winning an Olympic gold medal.
Besides wanting that gold, the Davaoeña also admits she’s a stubborn fellow. Yes, Petecio vows to continue working hard and training even if the sport of boxing has sometimes been cruel to her.
“Sa love nga, nagbibigay tayo ng oras, kahit sa maling tao. Bakit hindi natin gawin sa sports na gusto natin, na alam nating tama para sa atin, di ba?”
