Cebu’s Niñolito Justiniane (right) outsprints an NCR runner to win gold in the boys 100-meter final. (CDN PHOTO/DALE ROSAL)
Motivation it is said, is a major ingredient for success. Whether in business, career or sports, motivation wills individuals to go the extra mile and test their limits instead of just scratching the surface of their full potential.
In the recent National Milo Little Olympics in Marikina City, two Visayan athletes stormed the meet by bagging the top individual honors in their respective events. Their common motivation? Win the gold in their final Milo stint.
Both on their last tour of duty for Team Visayas, Niñolito Justiniane and Elrica Ann Guro made sure they’d go out with a bang.
Justiniane of Beatriz Durano Memorial National High School of Danao City and Iloilo National High School’s Guro, both 16 years old, took the glitter off the mighty National Capital Region’s domination of track and field by winning the Most Outstanding Athlete (MOA) award in secondary athletics.
For the past six years, the Big City Athletes are considered the lords of the track. This Cebuano and Ilongga changed all that.
Justiniane harvested four gold medals while Guro bagged three and both swept the meet’s coveted sprint titles.
Justiniane ruled the 100-meter sprint, 200m sprint and 400m run then anchored Team Visayas to the gold in the 4x100m relay.
“I told myself that it’s time to win because this is my last year to compete in Milo. It’s now or never jud. That’s why I trained very hard even without my coach,” said the Tuburan, Danao City native.
TRIALS
Justiniane said he aspired for the “Most Outstanding Athlete” award so he can show his teammates back in Danao City that they too can do it with proper motivation. “I made a promise to win the MOA award before I finish high school. Thank God my prayers were answered.”
The MOA however, was not handed on a silver platter.
The bad condition of the Danao City Sports Center oval prevented him from practicing there. His coach also cannot exclusively train him as he is also handling other athletes.
But as they say, if there’s a will, there will always be a way.
Justiniane trained by himself. And because of the oval’s bad condition, he used the grandstand’s stairs instead for speed training and did long runs in the national highway.
“Even when I’m sick I still train. It’s just about discipline and hardwork. If you want to reach the top you have to sacrifice. Hardships and trials help us to become resilient,” he shared.
BREAK A LOSING SPELL
The son of an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW), Niñolito is the youngest of two siblings. His brother is also an athlete but had little success. He made his brother’s failures as another motivation to shine.
“My 22-year old brother, who is a mechanical engineer, is also a former athlete. Growing up, I always see him get frustrated because he failed to win the competitions he joined in. I pity him because I knew he trained hard. That’s why I persevered to continue what he started and give my family some honor,” he said.
After learning that he was named MOA in secondary athletics, Justianiane said he received inspiring text messages from his brother. It felt awkward, he said, because they aren’t close. But he knew that his kuya and family are very proud of him.
And for this high school senior who considers himself a prodigal son, all the gold medals in the world simply cannot match the warmth and love of his family.
PEANUT VENDOR SHINES
Unlike Justiniane, Guro is the only member of her family who is into sports. Her parents and siblings make a living by selling roasted peanuts in La Paz, Iloilo City. She looks shy and sickly. But beware, she turns into a beast when she puts on her running shoes.
“I really love running that’s why I decided to join the team,” she shares.
Guro knew she is destined to finally end her Milo frustrations this year when she won the 200m gold during last summer’s Palarong Pambansa in Laguna.
In the Milo National Finals weekend, she won the 100m sprint and the 400m run and powered Team Visayas to the gold in the 4x100m relay.
Guro was in tears when she breasted the tape first in the 100m final. Asked why, she said she found it almost impossible for a poor probinsyana like her to beat some of the country’s top junior sprinters, especially those from NCR. She also remembered the sacrifices she had to undergo just to get her hand on that Milo gold medal.
“I was on the verge of giving up because the training was very hard. I just told myself that pain is temporary, that I need to experience it if I have to get better.”
Justiniane and Guro’s sterling achievements during the Milo National Finals also opened a lot of opportunities for them to make their future a lot brighter.
This early, Justiniane said he is getting a lot of scholarship offers from top Manila universities for his college education. Guro on the other hand, is staying put in Ilo-ilo for college on yet another scholarship.
The trials that they faced and conquered during the Milo Finals have definitely toughened up these two sports heroes. And for what they have been through, Team Visayas’ Magnificent Duo knew that from now on, there’s just no battle too impossible for them not to win.