By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
A pall of gloom descended upon Philippine sports Wednesday as Lydia de Vega-Mercado, one of the greatest athletes the country has ever produced, has run her final lap.
The former Asian sprint queen succumbed to breast cancer Wednesday night after a courageous four-year battle with the dreaded disease. She was 57.
“On behalf of our family, it is with absolute grief that I announce the death of my mother, Lydia de Vega this evening, Aug. 10, 2022, at the Makati Medical Center,” de Vega-Mercado’s daughter, Stephanie de Koenigswarter, posted on social media.
“She fought a good fight and is now at peace.”
Immediately, tributes poured for the legendary track queen fondly called ‘Diay’ not only for the legacy she has cemented in Philippine sports but also for her gentle soul.
Laoag City Mayor Michael Keon, who was the former director of the Gintong Alay Project which nurtured de Vega-Mercado’s sprinting prowess, has nothing but praises for the track queen.
“Lydia was a pioneer in track and field. She was perhaps the most bemedalled Filipino athlete not just in track and field, but in all sports,” Keon said.
During de Vega-Mercado’s prime, the legend was an unstoppable force in the centerpiece event not just in Southeast Asian but the whole Asian region.
She was a two-time Asian Games gold medalist, four-time Asian champion and nine-time Southeast Asian Games gold winner.
She was also a two-time Olympian, having represented the country in the 1984 Los Angeles and 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Keon fondly remembered a local race where de Vega-Mercado, then 16 years old, broke records in the 400 meters. He knew then that the country has a world-class athlete in the making.
“She was one of the luminaries in sports. That’s why I hope that her passing would not be in vain,” said Keon, adding that the loss of de Vega-Mercado can help the country focus not only on excelling in specific sports, but also on a collective system as a whole.
Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) president Terry Capistrano also offered his condolences to de Vega-Mercado’s family on behalf of the association.
“We lost one of our own, one of our best, but her spirit will live on in our hearts,” Capistrano said in a statement.
Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Bambol Tolentino said de Vega-Mercado “left an imprint to the hearts and minds of all the people she inspired.”
“Her story will always be a success, a story to all athletes that Filipinos are capable of being on the pedestal especially to those who dream and pursue it,” Tolentino said.
Former PATAFA chief Philip Juico also described de Vega-Mercado as a role model and inspiration “as an authentic Filipino athlete who genuinely loved sports for the good it could do and not for what she could get out of it.”
“She knew that a force for good like sports should bring out the best in people. Diay joins many other sporting greats who fought the good fight and finished the race with their principles intact,” Juico said.
Commissioner Bong Coo of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) said the death of de Vega-Mercado was “an irreplaceable loss to the sporting community.”
“I grieve as an athlete and friend. Lydia is my contemporary. Kasama ko siya, kapanahon,” Coo said.
“I am sure her legacy and achievements will continue to inspire for generations to come, as she was also an inspiration to me.”
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has also conveyed his sympathy over the death of the Filipino sports icon as he enjoined the nation to pray for her peace.
“I join the entire nation in mourning the untimely demise of former Asian sprint queen Lydia de Vega, after a four-year battle with breast cancer. My sincerest condolences to her family and loved ones,” Marcos said in a statement.
“Lydia de Vega has run her last race. She has finished her contest. She has fought a good fight. Let us pray for her peace,” the President added.
As he condoled with the former Asian sprint queen’s family, the President remembered De Vega’s achievements as among the country’s most celebrated national athletes. (With a report from Betheena Unite)
