The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) honored Olympians Nesthy A. Petecio (boxing) and Elreen Ann Ando (weightlifting), both enlisted personnel at the Coast Guard Special Service Office, for their laudable performance in the ongoing Paris Olympics in France, as well as actor Gerald Anderson, a coast guard auxiliary commander, for rescuing flood victims of Super Typhoon “Carina”.
PCG Commandant Adm. Ronnie Gil Gavan said Petty Officer Second Class (PO2) Nesthy Petecio will be promoted to the next higher rank, Petty Officer First Class (PO1), after securing a bronze medal in the women’s 57 kilogram boxing at the Paris Olympics.
“You have shown us the true spirit of a champion and have become an inspiration not only to your fellow coast guardians but to countless Filipinos in reaching their dreams. We are immensely proud of your achievement and together with your family and fellow Coast Guardians, we celebrate your accomplishment with great joy and jubilation,” Gavan said on Friday, Aug. 9.
Petecio took home the bronze medal after absorbing a 1-4 defeat against Atena Szeremeta of Poland in the semifinals of the women’s 57-kg boxing last Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Gavan applauded Ando’s efforts after she recorded a personal best in the women’s weightlifting 59 kg event. She holds the rank Seawoman Second Class (SW2) in the PCG.
Ando lifted a total of 230 kg in the in the women's 59 kg weightlifting, besting her previous record of 228 kg and enough to secure the sixth spot out of 12.
Her recent outing also marked a significant improvement from a seventh-place finish in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in Japan.
“From a seventh finish in the Tokyo Olympics to a sixth in the #Paris2024, Elreen Ando has indeed shown us the fighter that she is. She just does not stop if it's her aspirations on the line. Job well done, Elreen! The whole nation is proud of you!” Gavan said.
Typhoon hero
Anderson, for his part, received a “Search and Rescue” medal from the PCG for his “heroic acts” amid the onslaught of Super Typhoon Carina in Metro Manila two weeks ago.
The Search and Rescue medal, according to the PCG, is given to individuals who performed "exemplary acts in the conduct of search and rescue, resulting in saving life at sea." To justify the award, the act "shall be evidenced by voluntary participation in the face of great risk and sacrifice during such activity/operation."
Anderson, who holds the rank auxiliary commander in the PCG Auxiliary (PCGA), went viral on social media after he was caught in a video wading in floodwater to rescue residents amid massive flooding in Barangay Sto. Domingo, Quezon City.
He received the medal during an awarding ceremony at the PCG National Headquarters in Manila on Thursday.
According to the PCG, Anderson has been an active partner of the Command, especially during humanitarian and disaster response (HADR) operations.
“He is always present during the Coast Guard’s relief operations and disaster rehabilitation. He continues to help Aetas in Zambales, recovering families in Marawi, and even donated medical supplies and tents during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Together with Auxiliary Ensign Julia Barretto and other PCGA members, Auxiliary CDR Anderson also donated bags filled with school supplies for the children of Pag-asa Island,” PCG spokesperson Rear Adm. Armando Balilo shared.