It was a promise fulfilled for Nesthy Petecio to her late best friend, Alexcel Dargantes, upon clinching the boxing silver medal in the Tokyo Olympics.
In a Facebook post, Petecio shared her gratitude for the blessings she has been receiving as if she was talking to Dargantes, a former teammate with the national team who passed away last February.
“Buddy!” Petecio wrote, tagging Dargantes’ Facebook account.
“Alam kong nakikita mo ako ngayon. Grabe yung mga blessing ni Lord ngayon, sobra-sobra buddy! Lahat ng mga plano natin at napag-usapan natin nangyayari na.”
Petecio lamented Dargantes’ absence in her time of glory, but knew that she was not alone in her journey to the Olympic medal.
“Sayang lang at wala ka para masaksihan ang lahat ng ito. Alam kong kasama kita sa bawat laban ko... Payakap ako nang mahigpit sayo!” Petecio wrote.
The Olympian promised to visit Dargantes along with her silver medal.
“Excited ako na ipakita sayo ito! Hindi man ito ginto pero higit pa sa ginto ito dahil buwis-buhay kong pinaglaban ito. See you soon buddy! Miss na kita sobra. I love you!”
In previous interviews, Petecio said her best friend’s wish was for her to make it to the Olympics. Her Tokyo qualification came a month after Dargantes’ passing.
Since then, Petecio vowed to give her best to make her Olympic stint worthwhile, not only for herself, her family, her coaches and her supporters, but also for her best friend who was smiling at her from heaven.
“Nakangiti siya ngayon sa taas. Sobrang proud niya sayo,” wrote one of the admins of Dargantes’ Facebook memorial page following Petecio's Olympic feat.
Mission accomplished.