00:00 [music]
00:10 At the Tokyo Olympics 2021,
00:12 Hygeline Diaz won the country's first gold medal in weightlifting.
00:18 In sports tennis,
00:20 the Filipino team's manager Alex Ayala
00:22 has the highest rank in Southeast Asia
00:26 and was a three-time Grand Slam winner in his career.
00:29 The Filipino team was also all-out in the FIFA Women's World Cup.
00:34 This is just a few of the women who have continued to bring recognition to our country.
00:40 But despite the successes of our Filipino athletes,
00:45 some still experience what are called gender barriers.
00:49 Someday, the sports that we thought would be difficult to do,
00:54 they are the ones who recognize that they are good at these sports.
01:00 Actually, all men can do it, even women.
01:04 One of the gender equality objectives of the International Olympic Committee
01:08 is to achieve a 50-50 ratio of men and women in participation and leadership in sports.
01:16 But the Philippines has not yet reached this goal.
01:20 That's why I'm talking to different NSA to promote their women athletes.
01:26 They should be an equal number.
01:28 But if you have 10 male athletes, there should be at least 10 female athletes for equal.
01:34 And we hope to get to that point.
01:37 In order for women to reach the finish line and enter sports,
01:42 we met some of the people who are pursuing their dreams.
01:48 [music]
01:52 Dream Big
01:53 Because of the PFF Women's League,
01:55 the 18-year-old Raya Tolentino was able to play for the Girls National Football Team.
02:02 Raya was born in Cebu and she is a player of the Manila Nomads group of the PFF League.
02:07 I think it all started when I got into the U-16 National Team.
02:11 I think that's when I first got recognized nationally.
02:14 Thanks to that, I was invited by Coach Shane to play for Manila Nomads.
02:18 In one of the tournaments, I played against the coach of Ateneo, his team, and that's where he scouted me.
02:24 She admitted that the local sports competitions are still lacking
02:28 so that the future of developed provinces like hers can be seen.
02:33 I want the sport to grow here in the country because there's really talent within the Philippines.
02:38 We need more support, especially for those locally.
02:43 I feel like we need more support for those local girls, like those from the province,
02:48 because we really have talent.
02:51 Coach Aguing Rubio has a strong passion for sports even when she was young.
02:58 I was just an ordinary kid, but I really loved to play.
03:02 I used to play basketball, track and field, softball, and all other sports.
03:08 But because of the lack of programs for other sports in the province,
03:15 I went to play football, which I'm happy about because football was the reason why I got a sports scholarship in the U-16 National Team.
03:29 I was able to graduate as a scholar.
03:32 For Coach Aguing, sports changed her life.
03:35 At that time, the Unigames was the strongest.
03:38 But in the Unigames, we had a chance to play for the UAAT schools.
03:44 That's when I discovered my coach in the U-16 National Team.
03:48 But my thinking at that time was, "I want to play for the National Team."
03:54 So, I don't know, because of my desire to play for the National Team,
03:59 the University offered me a bigger opportunity in the future.
04:03 So, my scholarship in the University was like a backbone.
04:09 I was able to graduate from there.
04:10 And the work that I have now is because of the University.
04:15 She formed the PFF or the Philippine Football Federation to organize competitions and form the Girls National Team.
04:24 She became an inspiration to give opportunities to the new generations of girls like Raya.
04:33 "Never Say Die" is the cry of the teen volleyball players of Sacred Heart School in Ateneo de Cebu.
04:42 Most of them dream of playing in urban cities or even in the UAP and NCAA.
04:50 I realized that there are so many phenomenal female athletes right now like Eliza Valdez.
04:55 And just seeing them soar high and go beyond what society has set for us women, it inspired me a lot. And here I am now.
05:02 That's why even though they are on vacation, the Magis Eagles Volleyball Team continues to practice.
05:10 According to Athletics Director John Inot, it's not just about moral support,
05:15 but also financial support that the female athletes need to use.
05:20 That's actually a hard question for all the programs.
05:25 Right now, what we have, of course, the school is supporting the different programs, but again, the budget is in a way limited.
05:35 The good thing, the parent support group are also helping out.
05:40 So yeah, primarily the support, the financial support comes from the school and the parents.
05:47 That's why as long as there are people who are pushing for sports to continue until college,
05:52 their school is also ready to support their players.
05:57 It's really different when it comes to the number one sport in the Philippines.
06:05 Everyone is excited and enjoying.
06:07 We see a lot of girls who are interested in learning a lot of sports,
06:12 and basketball is one of them.
06:14 They are very enthusiastic to learn and meet other friends, especially to learn the discipline, the teamwork.
06:22 We are also enjoying it, the same time.
06:24 They are learning sports that they thought they couldn't do before.
06:29 Some of the parents who joined the basketball camp are also happy to watch and support.
06:35 I'm really happy.
06:37 I'm happy because it's another skill that they will learn here in this camp.
06:47 The sports clinic or courtyard like this is a big step to introduce to the girls that they don't have to spend money
06:58 to dream of becoming used to their favorite sport.
07:03 This court serves as a community building place for female bowlers who dream of one day
07:14 to become a player, a coach, or a part of basketball in any way.
07:19 Media, statistician, anything, team managers, PT, all of that are welcome to play here in the courtyard.
07:28 And again, it's free for everyone.
07:30 There are time slots for female bowlers only to use the court.
07:34 This is something really big for all of us.
07:37 In their passion for running and the skill of passing the ball,
07:44 the young people of Negros Occidental are already playing rugby early in the morning.
07:50 There is no hiding the joy and joy in every point they get.
07:55 In the middle of the heat and rain, the fight continues.
07:59 Coach Jenjen Malayo is one of the trainers of the kids who are interested in rugby.
08:05 Jen admitted that it was hard for them to introduce this sport to their local community.
08:10 Our sports development here in Negros is not that big yet.
08:16 However, we are trying our best to spread the sport here in Negros.
08:22 Although it's hard to establish, rugby is considered as one of the contact sports.
08:31 And it's dangerous, especially for the kids.
08:35 But more than just getting to know each other,
08:37 the importance of rugby in the society is also taught to the young players.
08:43 We're simply trying to introduce the game itself.
08:47 We also want to show the good side of rugby, which is to emphasize the rugby values that are taught to us.
08:54 We're establishing this and it's also the foundation of our character development.
09:00 For Yui, rugby is just a part of the club or extracurricular activity of their school.
09:06 I don't know if I have a house, but I have a lot of things to do.
09:09 I want to be with my friends or classmates so that I can be included in rugby.
09:15 But because of the support that her parents are showing, she's just fighting for it.
09:21 I'm just trying to do my best to help my parents.
09:33 I want to go to high school so that I can go to Japan and play rugby there.
09:38 The coaches and development officers of the Negros Rugby Team are all out training amateur athletes in different schools
09:48 so that rugby can be included in the national game.
09:51 We talked personally to the principals.
09:56 We also have before, we invited PE teachers to train them so that they know what is the sport,
10:05 what is the program all about.
10:07 And now, the schools are open for us to train after class.
10:15 So we're happy.
10:16 Last month, I sent a survey to women, including athletes, coaches and groups,
10:23 about the participation of women in the field of sports.
10:27 In the online survey we did, it turned out that 74.3% of the answers experienced a lack of financial support when it comes to girls' sports programs.
10:39 67.6% of the answers gave priority to men's sports.
10:45 While 66.2% of the answers believed that there was a lack of professional support and a wider opportunity when it comes to women's sports.
10:57 In fact, actually, there will be a lot of sacrifices, especially for the women.
11:02 And it's not only that.
11:04 The women, because they get married, right?
11:07 When they get married, do they continue with the sports?
11:10 And then they have children.
11:12 What happens to it?
11:14 That's also probably one setback why there are less female athletes.
11:19 Because there will be a lot of sacrifices that they have to go through.
11:23 Despite the small number of women in the field of sports,
11:27 the PSC Commissioner on Women in Sports, Bong Ku, still believes that the number of women in sports has already reached a far-off level.
11:35 Like in combat sports.
11:37 That's why we pushed on combat sports.
11:40 It's a sport that is open for women.
11:44 It's not like it's only for men.
11:48 Neste Petesio, for boxing.
11:51 She's been very popular and very active.
11:55 Gymnastics, there's a lot of good females because of the rhythmic gymnastics.
12:04 We've come a long way and we'll go even further if we can give a wide range of opportunities and opportunities to compete even with the men.
12:14 Game on!
12:15 I am Vigo and I stand for truth.
12:18 (music)
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