Source: GMA News
-- The British embassy in the Philippines celebrated the countdown to the start of the 2012 London Olympics, Wednesday at the Manila Polo Club.
"We want Filipinos to share the same excitement. Here, in Manila, your athletes are completing their preparations in readiness for that final moment when four years or more of training comes to fruition and they reach for Olympic gold. Side by side with our own athletes, we will be cheering them on and willing them to succeed," said British ambassador to the Philippines Stephen Lillie.
As the highlight of the event, Lillie led the ceremonial 100-meter run to mark the 100 days leading up to the event.
After the run, the embassy had an open screening of the film “Game Changer: Britain Prepares,” specially commissioned by the British Foreign Office to showcase the UK's preparations for the London 2012 games.
The film shows various groups preparing for the games that will be happening from July 27 to August 12. Included in the film is the Royal Mint in Wales, and how it is producing almost 5,000 medals for the event, the London Philharmonic Orchestra recording all 205 national anthems to be played, and an appearance by British football superstar David Beckham, as he helped nominate the London’s Olympic torchbearer.
Source: Manila Bulletin
-- For the second straight time the Philippines will have a lone participant in the boxing competitions of the Olympic Games, one more sad commentary on the state of the sport in the Philippines.
After the heavily-funded, five-man team got wiped out in the last Olympic qualifying event in Kazakhstan, the country will just have light-flyweight Mark Anthony Barriga to carry the hopes and dreams of the entire nation to win a medal in London.
Charly Suarez could have joined Barriga in the Olympics, but lost in the lightweight gold medal match against China’s Liu Qiang Thursday night, sending a chill to boxing fans and officials.
Despite the support given by PLDT-Smart, Barriga will be the only guy everyone will be looking at to carry the torch for the country.
But even his participation is tinge with skepticism. He was named the so-called “lucky loser” and advanced to the London Games after his quarterfinal opponent went on to win the gold medal in the 2011 World Boxing Championships.
Had Zou Shiming, the gold medalist, lost in the semis or finals, Barriga would have also become history.
But now, he has a chance at redemption, though.
His handlers, the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines, said it will pull all the stops to give Barriga the equipment and support, be it financial, mental and psychological, to make his London Games experience end in joy and achievement.
Barriga as lone Filipino boxer in the Olympics marks the second straight time that the country just has one fighter in the Games, duplicating the country’s 2008 Beijing Games campaign when light-fly Harry Tañamor was all by himself and lost in his first assignment.
Before 2008, the last time the Philippines had just one fighter was in the 1960 Rome Olympics with Segundo Macalalad as its representative in the flyweight class. After drawing a bye in the first round, Macalalad lost in the second round of eliminations.
The Philippines has never fielded less than three fighters to the Olympics and boxing has actually contributed five medals (two silvers and three bronzes) of the total nine won in the last 80 years.
Two boxing personalities – Tony Aldeguer of Cebu and Manny Piñol of North Cotabato – were not surprised with the misfortune that struck Philippine boxing.
“Nothing has changed and I don’t think there ever will be,” said Aldeguer, whose boxing factory in Cebu is a known producer of talent.
Piñol, whose obsession with uplifting the state of amateur boxing even saw him land in Cuba six years ago, said the current leadership has no concrete and solid grassroots program.
Piñol has become so exasperated that he has dissolved his amateur stable.
“Once my boxers turn 17 (years old), they turn pro,” said Piñol, who, like Aldeguer, has a vast stable of pros.
Philippine Olympic Committee spokesperson Joey Romasanta said he is not upbeat about the Philippines’ chances in London.
He said, in effect, that failing to make the Olympics on actual merit would make it difficult to win a medal.
“But we are hoping against hope,” he said.
Source: AFP
-- London Olympics organisers said Saturday they were taking "extremely seriously" allegations of "sweatshop" conditions for Indonesian workers producing outfits for British athletes and Games volunteers.
The Independent newspaper alleged that the clothing being made for the London 2012 Olympics was "being manufactured for Adidas in sweatshop conditions in Indonesia, making a mockery of claims by London 2012 organisers that this summer's Games will be the most ethical ever".
Adidas, the German sportswear and equipment manufacturer, is investigating, the London organising committee said.
"We place a high priority on environmental, social and ethical issues when securing goods and services and take these allegations extremely seriously," said a spokeswoman.
"We have spoken to Adidas and they have assured us that they are investigating these allegations, the conclusions of which will be made public.
"We regularly remind all of our licensees of the importance we place on the sustainable sourcing code they have each signed up to."
Workers at nine Indonesian factories which have contracts to produce Olympic shoes and clothing for Adidas are working up to 65-hour weeks and earning as little as 5,000 rupiah ($0.55, 42 euro cents) an hour, the report claimed.
The Commission for a Sustainable London 2012, the body responsible for monitoring ethical practices relating to the Games, told The Independent that it was "deeply concerned" by the report.
The organising committee's priority "must be to investigate these issues and act accordingly to protect workers' rights and improve working conditions," said Shaun McCarthy, the commission's chairman.
The Independent said in its editorial that the working conditions reported by staff at the Indonesian factories were "unconscionable".
"Workers tell of pitiful wages, unreasonable production targets, appalling hours and even outright abuse," it said.
The London Games organisers "should be ashamed" of themselves, it added.
Last month fashion designer Stella McCartney revealed the Union Jack-inspired outfits she has designed for the British Olympic team at a glitzy London launch.
Source: GMA News
-- National boxing coach Roel Velasco is confident that the present crop of athletes discovered by the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) has a strong chance of winning the country’s first Olympic gold medal in the 2012 London Olympics.
Velasco, a bronze medalist in the 1992 Barcelona Games, said that brothers Rey (flyweight) and Vic Saludar (lightflyweight) are among the boxers that ABAP hopes may finally deliver the long-awaited Olympic gold.
"The core of our national pool are young and determined in their quest to give honor for our country. I believe our first Olympic gold can come from this batch," said Velasco, who also mentioned Charly Suarez and Annie Albania as two other gold-medal prospects.
"Bukod sa determinado, masunurin sa mga itinuturo ng kanilang coach, kaya naman nagiging successful sila. Wala pang ere sa katawan," he added.
Rey, the elder of the Saludar brothers, said their quest for glory did not end in winning medals in the Asian Games.
"And target po namin noong kami ay mapili sa national team ay ang makamit ang minimithing Olympic gold medal. Kaya ito ang pipilitin naming maabot hanggang kaya namin sa pamamagitan ng puspusang preparasyon," the 23-year-old Saludar said.
Bowler Biboy Rivera and world billiards champion Dennis Orcollo supported the Guangzhou Asian Games gold medalist’s statement.
Rivera, who won the singles gold in the recent Asiad, said that with the schedules of coaches finally settled, he can now prepare and train without any more interruption.
"The Philippine Bowling Congress has allowed me to train exclusively with my personal coach, Madoka Amano, so wala nang sagabal sa ensayo ko. Nahirapan kasi ako nitong nakaraang taon dahil sa ensayo sa personal coach ko tapos ensayo na naman sa national team coach, kaya medyo naapektuhan ang laro ko," he said.
For his part, Orcollo said that he will be competing in several international events as his preparation for the 2011 Southeast Asian Games in Indonesia.
"Ang unang paghahandaan namin ay ang World Pool Masters in Las Vegas later this year. Then I’ll also compete in several world-class tournaments in the US para paghandaan na rin ang SEA Games.
