By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

THE 31^st edition of the Southeast Asia Games (SEAG) held in Hanoi, Vietnam concluded last May 23. It’s sad that our contingent this year, being the defending champion, was not successful in its mission this time. Yes, our nationals tried their best to defend the title vigorously but failed, landing only fourth overall in the medal tally out of eleven nations with 52 gold, 70 silver and 104 bronze medals. These were not enough to land on the podium. PH was behind champion the host Vietnam (188-110-109), Thailand (78-92-125), and Indonesia (62-81-70).

I believe this is the third worst performance of our nationals as defending champions – landing an ugly sixth place finish overall in 2015 and 2017.

Days after SEAG ended, bashers on Facebook were one in saying that there’s something terribly wrong in our Philippine sports system, citing the incurable favoritism system by sports association officials, inadequate game plan, derisory training of athletes and players, lack of discipline, over confidence, corruption, etc.. In sum, these caused the PH debacle despite fielding 656 athletes, our biggest contingent abroad.

I have to agree with most of these reasons. Consider the setback of our team in our much-loved -sport. Our Gilas Pilipinas basketball team represented by our professional elite players from PBA, headed by six-time MVP June Mar Fajardo, suffered a horrific defeat in the hands of vastly-improved Indonesian five, 85-81, for the gold medal match. For the first time in 33 long years and 14 SEAG editions, Gilas failed to win the gold! For a nation that eats, breathes, sleeps and lives basketball, that was a big letdown.  It’s the sport closest to the Filipino hearts like a religion. I’m afraid the setback in SEAG this year may not easily be forgotten for a long time. I describe our stint this year a “successful failure” in the face of more discipline and much improved teams in the region.

“I take full responsibility for the result. Indonesia came with a very good game plan. They shoot well from the three-point line and in the end, we just couldn’t match it,” said Gilas head coach Chot Reyes. “Like I said, they tried their best, and that’s sports and that’s life. Sometimes things don’t work out the way we play,” he added.

Assistant head coach Jong Uichico, winner of nine PBA diadems and two SEAG gold medals then as the head coach, said, “it’s a huge wake-up call for Gilas. We cannot just assemble a team and send them with insufficient cohesion. Indonesia had planned long and hard for the Gilas showdown… pwedeng pang-World na sila.”

I agree with them. We watched on tv how the luckless Gilas five missed numerous three-point shots while Indonesia was doing its thing. But it was the big contribution of former NBA player Indonesian naturalized import Marques Bolden who saved the day for the Indonesian team. He foiled the shot of Gilas guard Matthew Wright’s essential game-tying attempt that made the final difference.

But I don’t agree with PSC chairman William Ramirez who said that one of the big reasons PH did poorly was the lack of international exposures due to COVID-19 pandemic. That’s a very flimsy alibi since the dreaded pandemic was a worldwide occurrence. “Palusot,” I should say.

Next year SEAG will be hosted by Cambodia and the ‘wake-up call’. Let’s hope Team Philippines officials have learned their lessons Let’s wait and see.

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, a younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, with all purity. 1 TIMOTHY 5: 1-2

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