ON WATER POLO AND CHEERING

I watched my first ever SEA Games today. In fact, I think it’s my first time to ever support the Philippines in an international arena. The sport? Water polo. Also my first time to watch. I was joking to my boyfriend, who was cheering for Singapore, that I liked it coz I get to objectify men, haha! But abs aside, it’s actually a very entertaining sport to watch. It’s action packed and it displays athleticism front and center. You have to be damn fit to thread non-stop! It’s also fast paced so you don’t really notice the time go by until they sound the buzzer. By the end of the fourth, the score was 2-23 in favour of Singapore.

Did it pain me to witness that landslide? I would be lying if I said I didn’t want the Philippines to win. But after watching the match, and the Indonesia vs Thailand game before that, I saw that it wasn’t our strong suit, at least not AT THE MOMENT. That said, I didn’t walk out of the complex depressed or pissed. It would’ve sucked if the Philippine team gave up and not play their hearts out. But they didn’t. I knew that they wanted it but the odds were against them (Singapore has 0 losses, whereas our water polo team had 0 wins this SEA Games). Although they technically had nothing to gain towards the medal count, they didn’t play as if that was the case. I’m proud of our team and I don’t regret cheering my lungs out for them.

When #13 blocked the Singapore penalty shot.

because this was me during the game, haha!

On that note, it was quite an experience to be the “visitor” in a home game. There were only a handful of Filipinos and the bleachers of the OCBC Aquatic Centre was a sea of red. Maybe it’s because I miss the Philippines, or the fact that we celebrated our Independence last Friday, or that I was already wearing blue anyway, but being outnumbered didn’t hush me. Yes, I may have gotten a few amused stares from strangers (mostly kids, haha) but I literally smiled and waved it off. You don’t have to be on the national team to represent your country. I was proud to represent mine in the stands and importantly, to my team. I wanted them to know that Filipinos, represented by the few of us, believe in them and are behind them all the way. I doubt they heard my words of encouragement but knowing I cheered to the best of my ability is good enough for me.

Coz in cheering and in playing (and pretty much life in general), more than the score and the decibels, the greatest performance indicator is yourself. Did you do it with heart? Is that the best that you can do? Did you give your all? Winners don’t win because their competitor is bad, they win because they’re better. You may currently be weak in comparison, but that shouldn’t make you doubt your capabilities. It should, instead, encourage you to train harder, fight stronger, and be a better you.

Always remember that, Reg, coz it’s easy to get frustrated when someone’s doing better and at your expense. You become impatient. Your focus blurs and you end up not giving your 100%. Like what the well-meaning coach was instructing the goalkeeper, “relax ka lang!” (just relax!). Easier said than done, but it has to be done in order for it to be easy.