Opinion: I Would Love to See More Resident Filipinos Representing the Philippines—Not Just Californians

Let’s address the elephant in the room. The athletes that represented the Philippines in football and basketball don’t look like the average Filipino. Many of them didn’t grow up or even live full time in the Philippines today. 

Let me be clear: being Filipino has nothing do with race, and anyone who says otherwise is a racist. Being Filipino has nothing do with religion, and anyone who says otherwise is a religious bigot.

A country that foolishly defines its national identity by race or religion is incompatible with democracy. Nations that persist with a national identity based on race or religion have huge problems reconciling their national identity with democracy and human rights (such as the “Jewish State” of Israel or the “Islamic Republic” of Iran). A country that defines its national identity with race or religion is exclusionary; people can’t change their race and are unwilling to change their religion.

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Democracy is necessarily multicultural, inclusive, secular, and nonsectarian. In a democracy, national identity is defined as a culture and language that people can share, learn, and contribute to. A national identity defined by culture and language is inclusive. Culture and language can be learned, adopted, and assimilated, as well as be enriched by migrants with their own culture.

So the question is, do these athletes representing our nation share the same culture, language, lives, experiences, and challenges that most Filipinos do? Can we truly relate to them and can they truly relate to us?

The problem is economic. Most Filipinos, even the most economically disadvantaged, have access to a basketball court, even if it’s just a makeshift half-court on the street. But not a lot of regular Filipinos have access to a football field, or an Olympic-size swimming pool, or simply have the time and money to pursue sports just for the sake of it.

I remember boarding a taxi upon arrival at the airport in Manila after coming home from the Taiwan KOM - Spring road cycling event. The taxi driver, upon seeing my huge bike bag, asked if I had competed in a race abroad, if I had won, and if I did, how much did I win. I said my goal was just to complete the ride and that the were no cash prizes to be won, at least not for the likes of me. The taxi driver, a hardworking man, couldn’t comprehend why anyone like me would join a sport if I had no chance of ever winning any cash prizes.

I realize that I was privileged to simply do what I love when so many from the masses have to forsake their dreams to make ends meet. The thinking for the average Filipino is, don’t pursue your dreams if you can’t make a living out of it. And that means don’t even try to be an athlete unless you can reliably win money every time. There’s very little understanding or even empathy for any athlete who isn’t at the very top.

This also reminds me that often, when I bicycle in far-flung provinces, I often get jeered upon or get snide smart-alecky remarks from townspeople and countryside kids, telling me, “Huli ka na (you’re the last)!” Bizarrely, I even get racist insults from both young and old people who are just as brown as I am, shouting, “Negro!” or “Nog-nog!"

These kinds of Filipinos don’t deserve any champions.

The problem is, in our post-colonial reality today, economics is racial. Across much of the world today, one’s economic strata is still largely determined by one’s ancestry, ethnicity, and nationality. The legacy of over 400 years of plunder, land grabbing, genocide, and slavery cannot be undone in just a few generations. Colorism truly is elitism, in more ways than one. 

It’s not just the Philippines that has a problem with athletes, representation, and economics.

African-Americans may have dominated sports like basketball and American football for decades, but it was only with tennis great Arthur Ashe and golfer Tiger Woods that African-Americans started gaining prominence in sports that were and is still dominated by whites. The same can be argued with the Williams sisters for tennis, or the Williams brothers in cycling.

Despite possessing an advantage due to their naturally high red blood cell count—an adaptation of indigenous Incans to living at high altitude—it was only during the late 1980s and 1990s that Colombians as well as other South Americans from Andean nations began to gain prominence in professional road cycling at the most elite level. And that was all sabotaged when white athletes such as Lance Armstrong started taking illegal performance-enhancing drugs to artificially replicate the advantages that Andean athletes naturally possess. 

Kenyans dominate marathon running because, like Andeans, they also have adaptations for high altitude that give them an advantage. But there are currently few Kenyans that compete at an elite level in professional cycling. It is only recently that initiatives such as Team Amani are seeking to develop cycling talent in East Africa. The reality is that it’s far cheaper to take up running as a child than it is to take up cycling. In cycling, the quality of one’s gear plays a slightly larger role in one’s performance than in running. 

The Badjaos of the Philippines are uniquely evolved for free diving, possessing much larger spleens than the average human. But you don’t see any Badjaos who have the luxury of competing at free diving events around the world. The Badjaos are already discriminated against even by their fellow Filipino Muslims.

So yes, I would love to see more resident Filipinos representing the Philippines, not just Californians.

I would love to see the athletes representing the Philippines train the next generation of Filipino athletes—children from far-flung provinces and inner city streets—and learn from these kids what their needs are.

I would love to see Filipinos cheer not only for winners, but for all Filipino athletes, even the ones that come in last, instead of jeering them like smart asses, because sportsmanship is a value that is as important for spectators as it is for athletes. 

I would love to see Filipino youths from public schools have access to a wide range of sports infrastructure: Olympic swimming pools, velodromes, et cetera. 

I would love to see Filipino parents earn enough to allow their children the luxury of sports and hobbies and of dreams and ambitions.

I would love to see the Philippine government, not just the Philippine Sports Commission, be free from corruption. And that's not up to the athletes; that's up to Filipino voters and spectators, many of whom don’t deserve heroes and champions.