It all started from a 24-year-old world-class sprinter from Oas, Albay. One hundred years ago, David Nepomuceno embarked on a gruelling 33-day journey aboard a ship to compete in the 1924 Olympics in Paris, France. The Philippines joined the International Olympic Committee six years prior and as a requisite for acceptance, it must send a Filipino athlete to the said edition of the Games.

Nepomuceno raced the 100- and 200-meter dash. He failed to progress to the next rounds in both events, but his participation alone not only blazed the trail for other Southeast Asian countries to join the Olympics, but also for future Filipino athletes seeking glory in the sports' grandest stage. Shortly after Nepomuceno’s stint, the country sent four athletes to the 1928 edition in Amsterdam, Netherlands and went on to clinch its first-ever Olympic medal -- a bronze courtesy of swimmer Teofilo Yldefonso in the men’s 200-meter breaststroke.

Since then, the country has competed at every Summer Games except in the 1980 edition, producing not only world-class athletes but heroes in their own right. Yldefonso went on to win another bronze in the same event at the 1932 Los Angeles edition, joining fellow bronze medalists Simeon Toribio in men’s high jump and Jose Villanueva in boxing.

Silver and bronze medals came in trickles in the coming editions -- Miguel White in 1936 Berlin, Anthony Villanueva in 1964 Tokyo, Leopoldo Serantes in 1988 Seoul, Roel Velasco in 1992 Barcelona, Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco in 1996 Atlanta and Hidilyn Diaz in 2016 Rio. But it was in the 2020 Tokyo where the country finally made a breakthrough as Diaz, a weightlifter from humble beginnings in Zamboanga City, became the first Filipino to win an Olympic gold medal.

As if it was not enough, boxers Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam also claimed silver medals, and fellow boxer Eumir Marcial added a bronze -- making it the country’s most productive participation in history.

The Filipinos have come a long way since Nepomuceno’s lone participation 100 years ago. In this year’s edition to be held in Paris, there will be 22 Filipinos fighting for the gold medal.

The Olympics is said to be the biggest and toughest sports spectacle around the globe -- a competition so stiff that within a century, the country has only managed to win one gold, five silver and eight bronze medals. Still, it didn’t undermine the perseverance and hard work of the Filipino athletes past and present in competing among the world’s best. With or without medals, these athletes showed the Filipino's never-say-die spirit.