The story of gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz was featured in a video posted at The Olympic Games official social media channels.
The short video clip was released on June 20 with the hashtag #MondayMotivation on the Olympic’s posts on Facebook and Twitter accounts.
“A feat that inspired an entire country to dream big,” its post reads.
A feat that inspired an entire country to dream big. #MondayMotivation @OlympicPHI | @iwfnet pic.twitter.com/e9lVaBeLTK
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) June 20, 2022
As of writing, the tweet received 9,825 likes, 422 quote-retweets and 2,244 retweets. Its Facebook post has over 78,000 reactions, 479 comments and 1.2 million views.
Diaz made her historic victory at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 in July 2021.
She won the women’s 55-kilogram category for weightlifting after lifting a combined weight of 224 kg. It was also a record-breaking feat.
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The video briefly covered Diaz’s early weightlifting days until she won her gold medal last year.
It showed her heart-breaking losses in the Asian Games in Beijing in 2008 and in the London Olympics in 2012.
Diaz got her big break after she won silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
In 2019, she received her first gold medal at the Southeast Asian Games that was held in Manila.
Finally, in 2021, Diaz got first place at the Tokyo Olympics, therefore making history and inspiring future weightlifters and athletes in the country.
How social media reacted
Several Filipinos said that Diaz’s video journey got them emotional.
“Too early to make my eyes water, @Olympics. But yeah, it is a good, happy cry,” one user said with a heart emoji.
“I’m crying right now,” another user commented.
Others noted that Diaz’s record-breaking victory was more than a decade’s worth of perseverance and determination.
“More than a decade of perseverance and never giving up. Sweet victory indeed,” one Filipino tweeted.
“I’m so proud of you. Your determination over the years paid off,” another user said.
“Our golden girl…she inspired a generation of weightlifters and fellow athletes that it is possible to win the gold. She never did give up on her dreams,” one user commented.
Some Filipinos, meanwhile, reminded fellow Pinoy that Diaz made such achievement despite the Philippine government previously accusing her of being a communist rebel in 2019.
“FYI this woman was red-tagged by her own government. She was included in the oust-Duterte (President of the Philippines) matrix but that doesn’t stop her in achieving her ultimate. Our sole Olympic gold medalist, Hidilyn Diaz!” one user said.
Diaz’s name was previously included in a matrix of people who were part of a supposed plot to oust outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte.
This matrix was released by former Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo to the media.
When asked about this incident following Diaz’s win, Panelo said that the apology should come from those who “those who wrongly analyzed the matrix.”
Diaz, however, remembered her inclusion to this matrix.
She briefly recalled this during her interview with Gretchen Ho.
“Ang dami kong pinagdaanan… Nagkaroon ng matrix, ‘di ba?” she was quoted as saying in a report.
READ: Congratulating Hidilyn Diaz: Officials asked to apologize to her, too
Diaz previously denied being part of an alleged conspiracy plot to unseat Duterte.
In a Facebook post, the Olympian also bared that she feared for her life after she found her name on the matrix.
