SEA Games triumph a toast to the Filipino spirit
By Alfred Joseph D. Foz

Whoever said that a Southeast Asian Games without basketball is empty, a bore, ought to be hanged.

The mammoth crowds at the various venues where the 23rd edition of the meet was held speak for themselves.

From the boxing competitions in Bacolod, to the judo action in Cebu and the aquatics events in Los Baños Laguna, the enthusiastic throng of people who cheered lustily for the Filipino athletes was simply overwhelming.

Local support for the Filipino athletes was nowhere more evident than in baseball -- already given up as a moribund sport in the Philippines-- which played to an overflowing gallery Sunday at the Rizal ballpark.

It was a sight to behold.

They clapped, they cheered, they stomped their feet and even did one spectacular “wave” after another in a show of unity and support for their athletes.

“The crowd really inspired us to win,” said an ecstatic Philippine Coach Edgar Delos Reyes in the din of the celebration following their 11-0 rout of Thailand in the abbreviated finals that completed an impressive title sweep by the hosts.

In one fleeting moment during the celebration the crowd sang and gyrated to the tune of “Pinoy Ako” which must have elicited goose pimples and pride for the Filipino race. All these as Filipino catcher Junnifer Piñero hosted and waived a huge Philippine flag to show how glad he was with the support of the crowd.

The scene must have been repeated everywhere in various arenas.

“(We are) very happy because we did not expect this huge support for the team,” said Ernesto Binarao, the RP batters’ pitcher who played the entire game.

“We really need (to step up) because this is our hometown. We need to show the Filipinos that baseball is still alive here (in the country),” said Binarao.

As the baseball squad basked in triumph, Filipino athletes in various fronts also did their share in the Philippines’ runaway title victory in the region’s biggest sports spectacle.

The most vivid memory of the 23rd Southeast games?

For a nation that badly needs a respite from a tumultuous political life, its probably that time in the last fortnight when Filipinos, setting aside differences and political beliefs, gathered as one in a show of unity and teamwork to show the world what it is capable of doing.

SEA GAMES PHILIPPINES [http://www.2005seagames.com.ph/]