EDITORS DESK Ramon Bonilla With the Olympic fever slowly fading from national consciousness and the Filipino winners now settling into their brandnew life of the rich and famous after a performance to remember in Tokyo, the question now lies on the sports leaders on how they will value time and hold their own against the prying eyes who will sure be on the lookout for the same, if not better, success at the 2024 Paris Games. The country enjoyed its moment on cloud nine after Hidilyn Diaz won the first Olympic gold medal for this nation. It was of the same magnitude that boxers Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam earned silver medals, and Eumir Marcial taking home the bronze to put us Filipinos on our feet and rejoice for our best showing in the biggest sporting stage held every four years except for this pandemic-delayed edition in Tokyo. But after rewards were splashed and due recognitions given came the point of concern that should be taken seriously and addressed meticulously: Where do we go now? Both the Philippine Sports Commission of chairman Butch Ramirez and the Philippine Olympic Committee headed by Rep. Abraham Tolentino believed that for the country to sustain the giant success in the Tokyo Games, there should be better appreciation to sports science. Of course, putting all work, from education to elite training, comes with a big price tag. Ramirez is confident that understanding deeply what Diaz had taken on her journey should be the proper model for the other athletes or national teams to emulate. Diaz has a complete support group led by her Chinese coach Gao Kaiwen, strength and conditioning mentor Julius Naranjo, sports nutritionist Jeaneth Aro, and psychologist Dr. Karen Trinidad. All these individuals played crucial roles in providing what the Zamboanga City native needed. The PSC hopes to maintain the program and share it with other athletes with big potential. Pairing them with elite coaches, physiologists, psychologists, nutritionists and even a masseuse could mean a lot for a repeat of Hidilyn’s victory. Education is also vital in inspiring younger generations to try sport. The Department of Education is encouraging student-athletes to try the National Academy of Sports in Capas, Tarlac. The school, funded by the government, will offer full scholarships in secondary level to talented students, with monthly stipend, free board and lodging, and uniforms also among the benefits. The House of Representative has vowed to give the PSC a bump on its budget to help preserve the momentum it gained in Tokyo. The sports agency, as claimed by the Palace, received P944 million in 2020 and P1.3 billion this year. It covered the training of athletes, expenses in local and international tournaments, purchase of equipment and the salary of foreign coaches. The Philippine Amusement and Games Corp., meanwhile, remitted a total of P7.37 billion to the PSC from 2016 to June 2021. The victories of Diaz, Petecio, Paalam and Marcial may have triggered the desire for Filipinos to duplicate whatever they have achieved, be it on the grandest stage like the Olympics or as a motivation to hurdle the challenges in life. But the medals won’t mean anything for the future generation if they would only serve as memories or entries to history books. The purpose of these triumphs should lean towards a renaissance in sports and appreciation of what it could bring to unite a country. (Ramon Rafael C. Bonilla is the head of Sports section of Manila Bulletin.)