By REY C. LACHICA
PARIS – The dream Olympic debut was not a pleasant one for Hergie Bacyadan but the warrior from Tabuk, Kalinga accepted her defeat positively.
Shorter by four inches, Bacyadan said her loss to the 5-foot-10 Chinese top seed Li Qian in the round-of-16 of the women’s 75kg class was just a minor hitch in her Olympic journey.
“Sobrang happy pa rin ako kasi dagdag aral ito sa buhay at sa sports na ginagalawan ko,” said Bacyadan who dabbles in wushu and vovinam.
As expected, she fought ferociously but he lack of experience took its toll. She threw lesser punches and was tentative at times.
“Andun yung tapang, kaya kong tangapin ang mga suntok nya at natatamaan ko rin siya pero kulang lang talaga sa experience,” said the 26-year-old Bacyadan.
In contrast, Qian’s resume was impressive being a bronze medal winner in the Rio de Janeiro Games before narrowly losing the gold in the 2020 Tokyo Games.
She does not know what future holds for her after losing her initial foray in the biggest sports show on earth but vowed to keep on training.
“Hindi ko pa po alam kung ano mangyari sa akin, it all depends to sa mga bosses,” said Bacyadan.
Still reeling from a shock defeat by Tokyo bronze medalist Eumir Marcial on Tuesday, Team PH started its campaign ominously after rower Joanie Delgaco was again overpowered by her rivals.
Obviously tired and weary, Delgaco finished fifth in her semifinal C/D, clocking 8 minutes and 00.18 – her slowest clocking since the prelims of the 2,000-meter contest started on Saturday.
But she consoled herself by beating fellow Asian Fatemeh Mojallaltopraghhale of Iran who timed 8:06.23.
On Saturday, she’s hoping to end her campaign on a high note when she races in the battle for 19th to 24th places.
