CAVITE Governor Jonvic Remulla will take the place of Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) President Al Panlilio as the country’s chef-de-mission (CDM) to next year’s Paris Olympics.
Mr. Remulla got the important task yesterday from Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham Tolentino and the former will immediately fill the vacuum left by Mr. Panlilio, who begged off due to his busy schedule at SBP and PLDT and Smart where he is the chief executive officer.
The 55-year-old Mr. Remulla is a sports man himself, being the honorary chairman of the national rowing association and team manager of the University of the Philippines men’s basketball squad.
“We understand Al’s [Panlilio] situation so we decided to appoint a new CDM for the Paris Olympics, somebody who has a great passion for sports, a true sportsman, somebody who has leadership, a workhorse and that’s Governor Jonvic [Remulla],” said Mr. Tolentino.
“The POC wanted a dedicated sportsman or personality who could live up to the responsibilities and obligations as CDM to Paris,” he added.
Mr. Tolentino also named wrestling’s Alvin Aguilar and rugby’s Ada Milby as CDMs to the World Combat Games set in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from Oct. 21 to 30 this year and the Winter Olympic Youth Games slated in Gangwon Province, South Korea from Jan. 19 to Feb. 1 next year, respectively.
Mr. Remulla will have in his hands the unenviable task of steering the country to eclipsing, if not replicating, its magnificent effort in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics where it hauled a historic gold medal courtesy of weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo.
The country also copped a couple of silver and a bronze from boxers Nesthy Petecio, Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial in Tokyo.
“He [Mr. Remulla] accepted the position without hesitation and he’s really happy and excited about his role as Paris Olympics CDM. We at the POC are confident that he can get the job done. He’s a true sportsman and very dedicated to helping athletes,” said Mr. Tolentino. — Joey Villar