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Paralympics chief bats for permanent facility for para-athletes

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="paralympians" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/sports/08/25/paralympians.jpg"/></figure></div>MANILA, Philippines -- In assessing the country&#x27;s lackluster campaign in the Tokyo Paralympic Games, Philippine Paralympic Committee (PPC) president Mike Barredo points to a confluence of events -- brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic -- that are beyond their control.&quot;While we went through the exercise in participating in the Paralympic Games, we were affected by the circumstances of COVID-19 in the areas of training, preparation and actual participation. We were pretty much hit by it,&quot; said Barredo on Saturday in Tokyo, on the eve of the closing of the Paralympic Games.In the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, the Philippines emerged with a bronze medal courtesy of the late table tennis player Josephine Medina, who passed away last Thursday in her Marikina residence. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/09/02/21/paralympics-medalist-josephine-medina-passes-away-at-51">READ: Paralympics medalist Josephine Medina passes away at 51</a></li></ul>But the Philippines&#x27; chances of winning a medal were impacted even before the Games officially opened.Days before they were supposed to depart for Tokyo, powerlifter and 2012 London Paralympic veteran Achelle Guion and her coach, Tony Taguibao and national team chef de mission Kiko Diaz tested positive for COVID-19.Discus thrower Jeanette Aceveda and para-athletic coach Bernard Buen, who were fully vaccinated, also returned positive results in Tokyo and had to be quarantined, depriving Aceveda the chance of being the first visually impaired Filipino athlete to compete in the Games.The final blow came when taekwondo jin Allain Ganapin also tested positive, forcing the athlete and his coach Dindo Simpao to stay in Manila.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/08/31/21/barredo-laments-pandemics-impact-on-pinoy-paralympians">READ: Barredo laments pandemic&#x27;s impact on Pinoy Paralympians</a></li></ul>&quot;Three of our original six Paralympians were unable to compete,&quot; said Barredo. &quot;Our hearts truly go out to them.&quot;&quot;We were all shell shocked (by these developments). So, it is really very hard to give an honest assessment given these difficult conditions and circumstances. This edition is for the books,&quot; he added. &quot;We don&#x27;t know what would have happened had Jinky (Guion), Jeanette and Allain been able to compete here,&quot; Barredo also pointed out.Barredo speculates that some members of the Philippine contingent may have been victims of the highly-transmissible Delta variant, which caused an alarming rise of infections both in the Philippines and in Tokyo.&quot;But we will never truly know, which is truly frustrating,&quot; the PPC chief added.Nonetheless, Barredo paid tribute to swimmers Ernie Gawilan and Gary Bejino, and wheelchair racer Jerrold Mangliwan &quot;for giving their best under these trying circumstances.&quot;&quot;I believe Ernie and Jerrold did pretty well while Gary is still a greenhorn who can strive to do better in future international competitions,&quot; he said.Both Rio Paralympic veterans, Gawilan and Mangliwan gave the Philippines its finest moment last Sunday in posting personal bests to place sixth in the finals of the men&#x27;s 400-meter freestyle-S7 event and men&#x27;s 1,500-meter-T52 race, respectively.But in order for the Philippines to improve its performances in future Paralympics, Barredo says it may be time for the government and private sector to chip in and set up a permanent facility for the country&#x27;s national para-athletes. In this regard, Barredo shares the sentiments of athletic coach Joel Deriada and swimming mentor Tony Ong.&quot;We already had a semblance of it at the ULTRA (now renamed as the Philsports Complex) in Pasig city, but it was unfortunate that it was converted into a quarantine facility by the government, so we virtually lost a year&#x27;s training in 2020,&quot; he pointed out. Barredo recalled a visit to Beijing, China, where he was shown by Chinese sports officials a facility that was exclusively used by their para athletes.&quot;This is why the Chinese have been dominating the Paralympics since the 2004 edition in Athens,&quot; said Barredo.As of Sunday, China has built an insurmountable lead in the medal standings with 96 golds, 60 silvers, and 51 bronze medals. Great Britain (41-38-45) and the United States (37-36-31) complete the top three of the medal table. <div>RELATED VIDEO: </div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1755145" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

On the country's campaign in the Tokyo Paralympic Games, PPC president Mike Barredo points to a confluence of events that are beyond their control.