MANILA—Initially, they had planned on bringing their old and trusty wooden paddles with them. With little support from the country’s two sports bodies, that was all they could muster.
But at the last minute, a good-hearted contact from the North American team who once competed in Boracay decided to loan them fiberglass paddles.
That began the series of fortunate events for the Cobra Philippine Dragon Boat team which eventually snared five gold medals and two silvers in the recent World Championships in Tampa Bay, Florida with some of the victories coming in record-breaking times.
“That was a good thing, because when we got there, it turned out nobody was using wooden paddles anymore,” said head coach Nestor Ilagan, who with PDBF president Marcia Cristobal led the Cobra PDBF paddlers during a visit to the Inquirer office Wednesday.
Paddler Jose Ijalo said the team actually has fiberglass paddles but they use it rarely, because they are expensive oars that break easily when banged against each other in the heat of frenetic action.
Now, each member of the team is getting top-of-the-line personalized Merlin paddles as part of their reward.
But that’s getting ahead of a story that began with the paddlers getting stripped of recognition by the Philippine Olympic Committee and receiving no support from the Philippine Sports Commission.
Cristobal said they announced their plan to compete in the Worlds through their Facebook page in the hope of soliciting help, but the team wasn’t really expecting anything.
In fact, before leaving, the team’s luggage was stuffed with instant noodles, loaves of bread and uncooked rice because Games organizers said they would only provide packed lunches during competitions.
The plane tickets, accommodation and pocket money were shouldered by private entities like Asia Brewery, with whom the team has a partnership contract that began in 2009.
Then came the help from unexpected places.
“When we learned they were coming here, we immediately burned the lines,” said Gail Gutierrez, a Filipino based in Tampa, who is a longtime friend of PH team drummer Anabelle Tario. “Over here help is just a phone call away,”
The Filipino community in Tampa, according to Gutierrez, is small but very active and it rallied completely behind the team when it learned of the paddlers’ plight.
Word spread that the team needed support and from Day 1, Filipino fans were already at the Tampa Convention Center beside the scenic Seddon Channel, where the races were held.
They brought home-cooked meals, fruits, cakes, power bars, chocolates and fruit juices and water stored in big coolers.
“We thought how can the Filipino team win without rice?” said Clem Lazaro, who is also based in Tampa.
There are days when the food came even before the team arrived at the venue.
“Sometimes the food gets spoiled because there were too many, and sometimes we had to share them with athletes from other nations,” said paddler Marie Michelle Jennifer Ebio.
The day after the championships, Lazaro, who has a nursing home in Tampa, loaded the team into a bus and took them to a victory luncheon with the rest of the Filipino community at the Philippine Cultural Federation’s Bayanihan Center.
Each team member was given $200 each in loose bills collected from Filipino community members, as well as $70 each for the entrance fee in their trip to Busch Garden theme park the following day.
In between, there were multiple invites for lunches and dinners that sometimes the team had to split up just to accommodate.
The team that the POC and PSC had snubbed became the darlings of the World Championships—and of a Fil-Am community whose support refused to let up.
Even on the very day the team left, Gutierrez was at the hotel making sure they got their pasalubongs (presents) that ranged from candies, to shirts to underwear.
“We tried to bring everything home because we don’t want to make them feel bad,” said the youngest member of the team, 23-year-old Maria Theresa Realizan.
But in the end, the team had to give away some of the bags of goodies to hotel staff to avoid paying for excess baggage.
The World champion team is composed of Tario, Realizan, Ijalo, Ebio, steerer Ruperto Sabijon, team captain Usman Anterola, assistant captain Salvador Sumagaysay and paddlers Amina Anuddin, Ma. Ailene Padrones, Thea Bartolome, Rowena Enriquez, Joemar Ocquiana, Junrey Dayumot, Perlito Idorot, Raymond Morales, Romy John Dionio, Cresanto Pabulayan, Ranie Llano, Ronald Tan and Rico Pradilla.
Cristobal, Ilagan and Maj. Harold Cabunoc, the assistant manager, accompanied the team in Florida.
for PH paddlers
Now, each member of the team is getting top-of-the-line personalized Merlin paddles as part of their reward.