Michael Martinez gains slot to PyeongChang Winter Olympics

Michael Martinez competes in the men’s individual figure skating in the 2017 Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/SEA GAMES MEDIA POOL

Filipino figure skater Michael Martinez is set to return for his second straight Winter Games.

Martinez, who competed in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, got a slot at the last minute after Sweden’s Alexander Majorov withdrew from the PyeongChang Olympics following the decision by the Swedish Olympic Committee.

The 21-year-old Martinez placed 8th in the Nebelhorn Trophy Competition in September of 2017. It was not enough to secure an outright ticket to PyeongChang, but it put Martinez  first on the waiting list in case of withdrawals.

Martinez placed 19th out of 24 skaters in Sochi, the first time a skater from Southeast Asia and from a tropical country competed in the Winter Games.

As for Majorov, there is petition at Change.org that seeks to reverse SOC’s decision and reinstate the skater back to the Olympic roster, but the Swedish skater has seemingly accepted his fate based on his tweets.