Cris Nievarez during the men’s scull quarterfinals heat. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/PSC
MANILA, Philippines—Cris Nievarez may have missed out on a medal, but he sees his first Olympics stint as the biggest learning experience of his young career.
The 21-year-old rower got eliminated from medal contention in the men’s single sculls after finishing fifth in the quarterfinal heats, two places below the top three, but Nievarez said is using as motivation for his next goal: Paris 2024.
“This is a big step for me and a big reason why I should strive better to qualify for Paris,” said Nievarez in Filipino.
The Filipino bet clocked in at 7:50.74 almost 34 seconds behind third placer Mondaugas Griskonis of Lithuania who finished the course with a time of 7:16.71.
“I saw my opponents’ strengths and I’ve seen the areas that I should improve upon,” added Nievarez who qualified for the quarterfinals after placing third in the opening heats.
Nievarez’ fifth-place finish in the quarterfinals meant that he was relegated to the C/D semifinals wherein rowers would only compete for classification.
Philippine Rowing Association President Patrick “Pato” Gregorio knows Nievarez can still improve knowing that this was the first Summer Games for the Quezon Province product.
“His performance is beyond expectations. Commendable,” said Gregorio. “Focused training here and abroad, Cris will really improve.”