The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics has been exhilarating for Filipinos: For the first time in history, our country bagged two gold and two bronze medals (as of writing)!
Carlos Yulo, a native of Manila, made history by winning two gold medals in gymnastics (Floor Exercise and Vault) within 24 hours. His achievements will be remembered in history books, and they have made the entire country proud.
With all the Olympics-related news and success stories, one wonders how these athletes got into their beloved sports. When did they start training? How did they develop an interest in their field? Considering their athletic prowess, one might think that they have been training their whole lives!
Smart Parenting gathered stories of Filipino Olympians and multi-awarded international athletes. We discovered at what age they started falling in love with their sports, when they began training, and when they first competed. We also learned how their parents and coaches motivated them throughout their journey.
Carlos Yulo, EJ Obiena, and Hidilyn Diaz all began their training before they were 11 years old
Carlos Yulo, Gymnastics - 7 years old
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The Golden Boy Carlos ‘Caloy’ Yulo started gymnastics at the early age of 7. The popular story of how he started: after seeing him tumbling in the playground, his grandfather brought him to the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP) inside the RMSC (Rizal Memorial Sports Complex) to formally train. He started competing in 2008, and the rest is history.
Mark Andrew Yulo, Caloy’s father, was beyond happy with his son’s achievement, "Masaya [ako] kasi matagal na panahon na ni Caloy na nire-ready ('yung sarili niya) simula nu'ng 2020 Japan Olympics. Four years niyang tiniis 'yan, talagang pinagpaguran ng bata. Deserve niya 'yan. Dugo at pawis 'yung pinaghirapan ni Caloy diyan, talagang gustong-gusto niya makuha 'yan."
Hidilyn Diaz, Weightlifting - 10 years old
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The first Filipino Olympic gold medalist, Hidilyn Diaz, came from a family of weightlifters. Allen Diaz, her cousin, said in a past interview, “Yung start niya po sumasama lang po siya sa amin. Nakita ko na talaga kasi, maganda talaga 'yung katawan pag bata pa. [Malaki] na po yung katawan niya." Hidilyn started weightlifting when she was 10 years old. She had to work hard because most weightlifters start training as young as 6 to 8 years old. At 11 years old, Hidilyn joined her first competition, marking the beginning of her successful weightlifting journey.
After winning gold, her mother shared in an interview, “We were jumping up and down last night because we were very happy, and we were crying. This has been her dream ever since. She has been eyeing the Olympic gold medal since she was young.” She later shared that young Hidilyn used to carry five gallons of water in each hand, as the water source is 70 meters away from home.
EJ Obiena, Pole Vaulting - 8 years old
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EJ Obiena ranked fourth in the 2024 Paris Olympics Pole Vaulting event. Although he missed the medal, Filipinos celebrated his feat: from ranking 11th place in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, he quickly climbed to 4th place.
A son of track and field athletes, EJ was exposed to sports early. He was 8 years old when his father started training him. In an interview, Emerson Obiena fondly shared how EJ started, “Nagsimula siya as a tag-along lang. Magkikita kami ng wife ko sa Rizal Memorial. Hinihintay nila ako matapos mag-ensayo.” His father also competed in the South East Asian Games for Pole Vault in 2007.
Emerson continued, “Pagkatapos ko mag-ensayo, makikita ko si EJ na hinahawakan din 'yung gamit ko. Tinry ko ipasubok sa kanya. Hinawakan ko 'yung kamay niya, binitin ko siya sa pole, tapos binato ko siya sa kutson. Nagustuhan niya. Nung lumalaki na, mga 8 years old sabi ko, pag natalon mo ito, mamaya dun tayo sa fast food, 'yung may laruan. 'Yun ang premyo niya. Every time matatalo niya personal best niya, [he’s] looking forward to that.”
Most importantly, EJ’s father saw that he is happy doing it, “Nalagpasan niya expectations ko. Ang pangarap ko lang talaga sa sport namin, magkaroon ng atleta na at par, at least world class. Umabot ng Olympics, bonus na sakin 'yun. 'Yun lang target ko.”
Nesthy Petecio, Boxing - 11 years old
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Nesthy Petecio won a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics and a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in boxing.
She started training at 11 years old and first competed in the ‘Araw ng Dabao’ festival. Her first opponent was a man. She said in a past interview, “Not to brag, but I felt no fear. I was more excited. I wanted to show them that women can keep up with men."
In a sport dominated by men, Nesthy worked and trained hard. Her father, also a boxing coach, often told Nesthy, “Wag ka diyan, babae ka, hindi para sa 'yo 'yan,” out of concern for his daughter. At just 15 years old, she won gold at the 2007 Philippine National Games, joined the national team, and now she’s an awarded Olympian!
Aira Villegas, Boxing - 9 years old
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On her Olympic debut, Aira Villegas won a Bronze medal in Paris. She was influenced by her brother, Rominick, to enter boxing. Her brother was a multi-titled boxer in their province, but due to an injury, he had to give up boxing.
Rominick became Aira’s first coach, training her at the age of 9–initially just for fun, not knowing it would become her career. She started competing when she was 16 years old.
Nesthy shared in an interview how she was inspired by her Kuya’s boxing achievements, “Pag sa bahay laging nakikita ko 'yung pictures niya, trophies, medals, and then mas lalo akong na-inspire nung kumikita siya ng money so hindi na siya humihingi sa magulang namin ng money for school. Scholar din siya sa boxing so parang gusto ko din ng ganun.”
Onyok Velasco, Boxing - 15 years old
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In the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics, Onyok Velasco won a silver medal in boxing. He came from a family of boxers: his brothers Roel and Nolito are also multi-awarded boxers and boxing coaches. Onyok started competing at the age of 15 and had already won international competitions by 17 years old.
In the 2019 Palarong Pambansa, Onyok shared a fond memory of how he learned boxing, “Noong una, wala naman talaga akong hilig sa boxing. Nagsimula akong nag-aral ng boxing para matuto akong lumaban, lagi kasi akong nabu-bully noon dahil sa maliit ako. Kapag atleta ka, hindi sapat na magaling ka lang. Ang pinaka-importante ay disiplina.”
Onyok and his brothers are considered Philippine boxing royalty. They have enormous contributions to the development of the sport in the country.
Carlo Paalam, Boxing - 7 years old
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The 2020 Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Carlo Paalam came from humble beginnings. He used to scavenge garbage at a local landfill when he was young in Cagayan de Oro. At the early age of seven, he started training for boxing. He learned boxing through local government programs like “Boxing in the Park,” an amateur boxing event at the Cagayan de Oro City Amphitheater.
That same year, he won his first boxing competition. He used his first winnings to buy rice for the whole family. His 2020 Olympic win brought together his separated parents, and he said, “For the first time, the two of them were in one place and very happy. My parents became friends again and that’s something rare for estranged couples.”
CDO City sports chief Jaymar Rivera said in a past interview, “Boxing is seen by some as a cruel sport. But in this case, it healed old wounds and eventually reunited a broken family. This should serve as an inspiration to many other poor children, especially in the countryside, to dream big and aspire for greatness.”
Eumir Marcial, Boxing - 6 years old
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The two-time Olympian and bronze medalist (2020 Olympics) Eumir Marcial started boxing at 6 years old. The son of a boxing coach, he said in a recent interview, "Na-inspire po ako nung nakita ko 'yung pinsan ko na lumalaban po siya. Parati ko siya nakikita na kasama 'yung tatay ko, na nakakapunta sila ng mga iba't ibang lugar. Sabi ko, parang gusto ko din maging isang boksingero.” Eumir first competed and won when he was 7 years old, marking the beginning of his boxing journey.
“??All of this, I dedicate to my father because he worked hard for me. He trained me because he wanted to be in the Olympics,” Eumir said in a past interview. His father trained him since he was young and during his 2020 Olympic-qualifier bout in China, his father pushed him harder in training. Despite nearing the age of 70 at the time, Eumir’s father woke up early to jog and train with him. Eumir credits his father for his boxing success.
Bianca Bustamante, Racing - 5 years old
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Making her mark in history, Bianca Bustamante started with go-karts and is now racing and winning as a McLaren driver in the F1 Academy, London, England. Before joining F1, she dominated the racing scene in Asia, winning multiple times at the Macau Kart Grand Prix. She is only 19 years old and already making her way into the international racing scene.
She started doing laps with go-karts as early as 3 years old and began racing and competing at 5. Her love for racing is a shared interest with her father, who serves as her mechanic and coach. Bianca said in an interview, “At the age of six, I knew what I wanted to be—this was the only path I wanted to take in life. I told my parents that I wanted to be homeschooled, I wanted to manage my own time and they let me. It was a leap of faith for them as well as for me. My parents made so many sacrifices and supported me in every way possible. My mom had to learn the whole language of racing, and my dad was both my mechanic and my coach. It's been a journey since then.”
Alex Eala, Tennis - 4 years old
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In 2022, Alex Eala created history for the Philippines by winning the US Open Juniors in New York City! She became the first Filipino to win a tennis Grand Slam of any kind, ending a long drought of Filipino representation on international tennis courts. This is just one of Alex Eala’s many international achievements.
Alex’s foray in tennis started when she was four years old. Two years later, she joined her first tournament. In a previous interview, her parents, Mike and Rizza, say that both Alex and her older brother Miko, constantly join international tennis competitions: “There are many who will congratulate them when they win. However, if they lose, we want to be there to help them process the emotional dip and to get them through it with new motivation to learn from their match.”
Read here for the benefits of getting kids into sports.
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