Photo by Bloomberg
There is most likely not a single Filipino in his right mind who wouldn’t be proud of the country’s history-making achievement last week, when our homegrown weightlifting goddess Hidilyn Diaz—now definitely a household name—accomplished her golden Olympic feat. As expected for momentous victories such as these, headlines and news coverages are sure to banner nothing else but this pivotal win. It is a moment so unprecedented, so singular in its place in history, that it changed the atmosphere of online discussions.
Having lifted the whole nation, as it were, it caused many of us, not just sports enthusiasts, to celebrated ecstatically—with our golden girl instantly becoming an social media celebrity in her own right.
How the Olympic gold medalist swiftly made glory on the Internet
The sudden social media fame that Hidilyn currently enjoys is not from sheer luck or mere coincidence. There are a lot of factors that brought her to the limelight. After all, her lifting a total of 224 kilograms (97 kg in snatch, 127 kg in clean and jerk) is not just record-setting, but solid proof of strength and, indeed, star quality.
The succeeding sections will tackle said factors one by one.
That victory and Olympic gold medal lifted the whole Philippines.
Whether on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or any other social media platform, news about the Olympic games swamped the internet. Couple this with the longstanding trivia of the Philippines being populated by among the most social-media-savvy people in the planet, and the online havoc caused by our nation’s raucous celebrations over our first-ever Olympic gold medal is not surprising.
After all, it’s not just some bit of good news coming out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. It is the story of our country’s pride. Hidilyn Diaz bringing home the Olympic gold represents what a determined athlete and hardworking Filipino can do. It proves that any of our Filipino athletes can have a place in their own sport. And with hard work, our nation’s sporting idols can even bag an Olympic gold.
More so, it has been almost a century since the Philippines longed for gold in the Olympic Games. And here comes Hidilyn Diaz—now deemed our Queen of Olympic Games, the first Filipino to ever win an Olympic gold—decisively and finally quenching that thirst.
The journey of Hidilyn Diaz to becoming an Olympic gold medalist was a dream turned into reality.
The early part of her life in her hometown was not easy. Her father worked hard as a tricycle driver, then farmer and fisherman, to support her and her five other siblings. But despite the lack of ample financial support, she continued on with her journey to the pinnacle of weightlifting glory.
Go for the gold mindset!
And yes, that ardor toward her sport powered her every attempt to win every competition she participated in. As early as the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, she competed as the youngest Philippine delegation’s youngest athlete and the first female weightlifter. Then, in 2012, she also competed in the London Olympics. In 2016, at the Rio Games, she almost rose to the top of her event, but she was fortunate to bag only the silver back then.
But according to her cousin and first coach, Catalino Diaz, Hidilyn almost quit her dream prior to Rio. He just told her to stay focused and never give up. It paid off. Between Rio and Tokyo, she bagged a bronze in the 2017 and 2019 World Championships, as well as silver in the 2019 Asian Championship, and a gold in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. She picked up another gold in the Roma 2020 Weightlifting World Cup, a qualifier for the 2020 Olympiad.
Products of training
Hidilyn then trained for almost two years in Malaysia for the 55-kg event in Tokyo. Together with her is the so-called “Team HD”, her close-knit band to help her clinch the win—her nutritionist and a set of coaches. While she and Team HD were there, the pandemic struck, and all of them could not go home. While Hidilyn missed her family so much, she was eager for the 2020 Olympics.
Hidilyn did not give up on her chosen sport. TV host and athlete Gretchen Ho shared on Twitter how Hidilyn trained for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. She was using makeshift weights in preparation for the event. What Rappler termed as “a product of years of dedication and training” is, indeed, our golden girl herself.
Her Olympic gold medal unearthed issues some Filipinos have with their government.
Our golden Olympian’s version of sports and road to success is not only her roller-coaster experience. Some of our fellowmen set ablaze on Facebook the old issues that Hidilyn were dragged into. Most of these are about the government. Some netizens posted old content on how Hidilyn begged private companies’ support for the Tokyo Olympics. They reiterated that the government should have full support on our athletes. Some other netizens provided old information that Hidilyn was in the total list of those who wanted to oust the President back in 2019. Some other netizens question how officials are now congratulating Hidilyn on her win despite not giving her the support and services she needed prior the Tokyo Olympics win. Similarly, even some media employees claimed that it is not surprising Hidilyn’s victory overshadowed the President’s sixth and last State of the Nation’s Address or SONA.
Hidilyn Diaz puts women in the gold medalists lane with her weightlifting career.
Definitely, Hidilyn Diaz’s win exemplified women empowerment. In a sport traditionally dominated by men, having a weightlifting queen is truly phenomenal. Indeed, we can say that our new Olympic champion picks made clear the case for gender equality in the highest levels of sport.
She is an inspiration to Olympic and Paralympic games athletes.
Many an athlete in the Olympic and Paralympic games gained confidence after Hidilyn’s historic win. When it’s the Philippine Paralympic team’s turn to compete next month, their goal is definitely to exhibit improved performance, and no doubt they would be drawing inspiration from Hidilyn. Being a bearer of hope has definitely added to this golden girl’s online stardom.
Companies basked on moment marketing.
This last one is another major factor in the transformation of Hidilyn, the golden girl, into a digital celebrity. Various brands posted congratulatory content for Hidilyn on their social media pages. When you log on to your Facebook account, you will see that almost every page of these brands ride on this historic event. Additionally, some of the Philippines’ famous businesses and companies even rewarded her with lavish gifts and incentives. This is apart from the promise of President Rodrigo Duterte to give her a fully furnished house in her hometown. News about this bounty worth millions awaiting the golden champ made the rounds online as well. All this is a clear and real-life example of moment marketing—when brands jump on a hot topic and further create noise and content about it for further traction and mileage. Certainly, this added to Hidilyn becoming an instant digital star!
Availability of fast internet made it all possible.
It would be tough for anyone to catch up on news about the Olympic Games if he had no internet connection. And Olympic content won’t swiftly make the rounds on social media if the connection is lagging or not fast enough. In the same light, all factors contributing to the debut of our Olympic Queen and Social Media Star would not have come together, without slow internet connection. All her previous ups and downs, all who were inspired, all brands riding on this wave of marketing, won’t be known if businesses and people alike have no connection.
That’s why in moments of gold like this, we need to make sure we have fast and unlimited internet. For businesses, to take the opportunity to ride on what is trending. And for the ordinary person, to show our true Filipino spirit and celebrate our nation’s triumph!
Streamtech, the hard working internet provider, will not just usher you to the gold!
Great news! Just like the eager Hidilyn, Streamtech, your trusted internet service provider, also dedicates to provide the nation with the best internet services. As the pandemic drastically changed how we do things, we understand the situation. There is an incessant need for an affordable, fast and reliable connection to accomplish things. That is why from as low as PhP 1,499, you can already get up to 25 Mbps fiber internet. It can also come as a cable-internet bundle, in collaboration with Planet Cable.
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