Archer Bantiloc gets PH campaign going in Paris

Archer Agustina Bantiloc | Photo from Philippine Paralympic Committee Facebook page

PARIS—After parading proudly in the glitzy opening ceremony of the 17th Paralympic Games at Place de la Concorde to Champs-Élysées on Wednesday night, the lean Philippine contingent now buckles down to serious work.

All six Filipino bets from four sports are driven to succeed when formal action kicks off on Thursday, motivated no less than the phenomenal Olympic double-gold medal feat that the country achieved last month.

Archer Agustina Bantiloc, a former powerlifter from Tanudan, Kalinga, will set foot on the stage ahead of the rest on at Esplanade des Invalides archery range for the women’s individual compound open ranking round.

“I admit there’s great pressure as the first Filipino para archer in these Games—the biggest tournament of my life—but any athlete who made it here would want to win a medal,’’ said the 56-year-old Bantiloc in Filipino.

Bantiloc is expected to continue on to the elimination round the following day, as wheelchair racer Jerrold Mangliwan takes centerstage at Stade de France for the qualifying heats and medal race of the men’s 400-meter T52.Mangliwan, the reigning Asian Para Games champion, is fancied to stand on the podium after a near-medal finish in Tokyo three years ago.

Fiercely accelerating toward the line, Mangliwan inadvertently crossed the other lane, invalidating the result of his race.

“I’ve been practicing daily to avoid committing that mistake here,’’ said Mangliwan in Filipino. “I have a good feeling that a medal is possible.’’On his third Paralympic Games, the 44-year-old Mangliwan is likewise ripe for a podium performance in the men’s 100-m T52 event a week from now.

Taekwondo’s Allain Ganapin steps onto the mat on Saturday while four-time Asian Para Games gold medalist Ernie Gawilan competes in the qualifying heats and hopefully in the final of the men’s 200-m individual medley SM7.Swimmer Angel Otom and javelin thrower Cendy Asusano aim for a medal finish over the next few days.

The global sports showpiece for physically-challenged athletes will showcase 4,350 bets from 168 countries, all of them vying for victory at the French capital over the next two weeks. INQ