By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Alex Eala and Bryan Bagunas, two athletes who have brought PH sports to an exciting level with their success abroad, , have been chosen as the country’s flag-bearers in the parade of athletes during the opening ceremony of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand on Dec. 9.
Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino made the announcement on Tuesday, Dec. 2, citing the contribution the two athletes have made in Philippine tennis and men’s volleyball, respectively.
“Popularity aside, Alex and Bryan have made impacts in the global sports community and that makes them the best choice to carry the flag in the SEA Games,” said Tolentino.
The country has been assigned a 300-member delegation for the parade around the Rajamangala National Stadium in the opening ceremony, but the number could possibly be trimmed to 200 due to the year-long mourning for Queen Sirikit and the Songkhla disaster.
Close to 1,700 Filipino athletes are competing in this year’s edition that has 574 events in 50 sports and will now be played in two main hubs—Bangkok and Chonburi—after Songkhla was written off because of massive flooding.
Eala has been one of the country’s top sports stars after a phenomenal season that saw her rise from No. 148 early this year to No. 50 — the highest-ranked ever by any Filipina player in history — that was highlighted by historic victories in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.
She also became the first Filipina to get past the first round of the US Open.
Bagunas, on the other hand, was the main man of the Alas Pilipinas Men’s Team in the FIVB World Championship last September, spearheading a historic victory—over many-time African champion Egypt—in an FIVB competition.
Tolentino said that the choice for flag-bearer or flag-bearers have always been an important task of the POC and the athlete or athletes who have the most impact and inspirational appeal not only to national athletes but to the Filipino youth gain the most premium in the selection.
“It’s about the inspirational appeal, the motivation and hard-work that reaps accomplishment that make an athlete or athletes the best choice for the chore,” Tolentino said.
At the 2023 edition in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, volleyball star Alyssa Valdez was the flag-bearer at the opening ceremony.
