MANILA, Philippines — Olympic silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz was named as among The Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines (TOYM) for 2017.
According to the 26-year-old Diaz, who is from Zamboanga, her desire to rise from poverty motivated her to succeed as as a world-class weightlifter.
“Inspirasyon s’ya para sakin kasi dahil ‘yong nanay at tatay ko mahirap lang…hindi p’wede ‘yong ganito na ‘yong buhay ko at buhay nila. Kailangang gumawa ako ng paraan. Sa weightlifting ko nahanap ang solusyon,” she said.
She added that poverty should never be a hindrance to being an accomplished person and instead foster resourcefulness.
“Hindi ‘yon rason para hindi ka maging successful sa buhay. Kailangan talaga maghanap ka ng paraan para maging successful ka,” said Diaz.
TOYM Foundation Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, a sports patron, and chief executive of Hong Kong-listed First Pacific, which owns big brands such as Meralco, Philippine Long Distance Telephone and TV5, praised Diaz’s determination to succeed.
“I’ve always felt that sports teaches values to young people…hard work, determination, focus and love of your sport,” said Pangilinan.
“Sports always calls for a fair play, being unanimous in victory, gracious in defeat. Those are essential not only to sports but to succeed in life and any other endeavor,” he added.
The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) also lauded Diaz, “who created a big bang” when she snared the silver medal in the women’s 53-kg weightlifting event in Rio Olympics in 2016.
“Just when everybody thought she had already reached her peak and would slowly fade away, she made the country proud again by bagging the bronze medal in the same event of the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan last September,” the POC said.
“Showing that she remains a force to reckon in her sport, the proud Zamboanguena followed up her feat with a silver and a bronze medal haul in the 2017 International Weightlifting Federation in November at the Anaheim Convention Center in California,” said the committee.
“But it’s not just her achievements in the competitive arena that set her apart from the rest, she showed her big heart by putting up the Hidilyn Diaz Weightlifting Gym to develop young talents that may want to follow in her footsteps,” it added.
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