20 years since boxer Onyok Velasco made us proud by winning a silver medal, weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz bags a silver medal for the Philippines in the 53kg women’s division. Aside from ending the country’s Olympic medal drought, Diaz’ win was extra special as she is the first Filipina hailing from Mindanao (she's from Zamboanga City) who won at a non-boxing Olympic event.
While it is her third time representing the Philippines in the Olympics (she represented the country at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics), her victory proves that good things are worth waiting for. A peek into her Instagram account shows her sheer determination to bring a medal to our nation.
Five months prior to the Olympics, Hidilyn had to deal with an injury, but that did not stop her from training hard:
In fact, she would give her 110% during conditioning exercises:
And even improve her technique when it comes to handling those barbells equipped with heavy weight disks:
All of her hard work has paid off following this historic win. Her reward to herself: A feast consisting of pizza, rice, and adobo:
Congratulations Hidilyn!
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Banner photograph from Instagram.com/haidie20