EXACTLY one month before the opening ceremony of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games and Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino made a bold prediction of how many gold medals Filipino athletes could win in the games’ 20th edition.
‘More than four,’ said Tolentino on Wednesday at the Century Park Hotel during the press briefing for the games that open on September 29 at the 27,000 seat Paloma Mizuho Stadium.
The Philippines won four golds in Hangzhou 2022 (2023) courtesy of pole vaulter EJ Obiena, jiu-jitsu athletes Meggie Ochoa and Annie Ramirez and the highlight men’s 5×5 basketball team that regained the title last won in 1962 in Jakarta.
‘I have high hopes we’ll have a bountiful harvest in Nagoya and Aichi,’ he added.
The Philippines is fielding more than 450 athletes in 38 of the 43 sports in the Asian Games program and the usual suspects are expected to produce gold medals.
They are Obiena, who raised Tolentino’s level of confidence after he cleared 5.91 meters in Poland the other day, and double Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo, who, the POC president added, will have younger brother Karl Eldrew as another gold potential.
‘And don’t forget Alex Eala,’ said Tolentino, citing the recent success of the tennis sensation on the Women’s Tennis Association Tour and at Wimbledon.
‘Add the boxers and our jiu-jitsu athletes,’ he said.
Tokyo Olympics silver medalists Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio are in the roster, along with Aira Villegas, who, like Petecio was a bronze medalist in Paris 2024.
Eumir Felix Marcial will vie in his eighth professional fight in the US right on opening day of the Asian Games-Tolentino said he’s as confident as the Tokyo 2020 bronze medalist to prevail and immediately fly to Nagoya.
‘Eumir’s in the lineup and the arrangement is for him to make sure he wins in the US,’ Tolentino said. ‘He’s committed to fight in the US to keep his international title, but he’ll have adequate time to recover because boxing in Nagoya starts on September 24.’
Ochoa has since retired but remained on the national jiu-jitsu coaching staff, leaving Ramirez to defend his title in the games that end on October 4.
Tolentino said he’s confident Olympic prospect Chino Sy Tancontial could win a judo gold medal, in as much the same way as Gilas Pilipinas of coach Tim Cone.
As president of PhilCycling, Tolentino also has high hopes in BMX racing where Daniel Caluag-the country’s lone gold medal winner in Incheon 2014-returns to backstop Patrick Coo, bronze medalist in Hangzhou.
‘But don’t forget Kyla Sanchez,’ Tolentino stressed.
A former Olympian for Canada, Sanchez was the best Asian finisher at fifth place in the women’s 50m freestyle and 100m freestyle at the recent Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Irvine, California.