After an embarrassing performance at the SEA Games, two Filipino athletes found a reason to stay positive, thanks to their supporters who cheered them on.
John David Pahoyo and John Elmerson Fabriga, who were competing at the 3-meter springboard diving finals at the OCBC Aquatic Center in Singapore, both scored zero in Dive 4 after landing on their backs, the painful splash recorded for the world to see.
The video has now gone viral, with re-posts noting of how painful it must have been.
Instead of wallowing in sorrow, Pahoyo chooses to “laugh at myself,” emphasizing that he isn’t the first athlete to have had such a bad landing.
“This was not the first time I failed a dive, and I was not the first one who did so. And I am still proud because not all of us has the privilege to represent our own country [in a] big sporting event like this,” Pahoyo said in a comment posted on the viral thread on Facebook, Thursday.
He added, ”can you still smile after getting embarrassed in front of thousands of people?”
Pahoyo said he also did not expect to serve as an inspiration after his flop.
“Hindi ko inakalang makaka-inspire tayo nang maraming tao through our mistake and the way kung paano natin hinarap yung embarrassment at failure natin. Salamat po sa mga sumusuporta sa amin,” he said in a separate post.
But while netizens lauded the positivity, others asked the athletes to do better next time and to train well so they won’t be embarrassing while representing the Philippines.
It was not all bad in SEA Games stint though, and this video Pahoyo posted is his proof.
Yey! I'm so proud of us pakner John Fabriga, we really did our best despite of we just practiced this synchro dives for just 4 days, even though we failed to win, but atleast we did overcame what we once knew was out limit, and that makes us a champion <3 Thanks coach Brian Palattao for your endless support and immeasurable love to us from the preparation until the end of this competition, and special thanks to the people who's doing their best to make this experience possible, I owe you all of this :) #SG2015 #SEA #Games #Singapore #Diving #Pilipinas
Posted by JD Pahoyo on 9 Tháng 6 2015