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Duterte 'dabs' with Didal as Asian Games winners feted


President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday honored athletes who bagged medals in the recently concluded 18th Asian Games in Indonesia.

Duterte led the handing of citation certificates and cash incentives to the winners in Asia's biggest sporting event where the Philippines scooped four gold, two silver and 15 bronze medals for a 19th place finish.

The country's medal haul was an improvement from the 2014 edition in Incheon, South Korea where the Philippines only had a solitary gold, three silvers and 11 bronzes.

During the event in Malacañang, skateboarding champion Margielyn Didal convinced Duterte to do the "dab" which drew cheers and applause from the audience.

 


"I congratulate our athletes and their coaches for their efforts in bringing honor and recognition to the Philippines in the field of sports. We Filipinos have always been known for our competitive spirit, and this year we did not fall short of showing our trait to our neighbors," Duterte said in his speech.

"Our journey in the Asian Games has truly fostered unity among our players who are pushing towards a specific goal. More than just a competitor’s passion for the game, what draws them together is the collective aspiration to represent the best of our resilience, competence and determination as a nation."

The President also said he has already directed the Philippine Sports Commission to provide additional incentives, to be sourced from its funds, to the Indonesia Asian Games winners.

"Let me assure our athletes that you have my continued support in developing yourselves as you pursue your respective discipline," he said.

Special Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go later announced that the additional incentives are P2 million for gold medalists, P1 million for silver medalists and P400,000 for bronze medalists.

For team sports, the members will have to divide the incentive among themselves, according to Go.

The additional incentives come from the Office of the President and PSC.

The National Athletes and Coaches Benefits and Incentives Act (Republic Act 10699) assures Asian Games gold medalists P2 million, silver medalists P1 million and bronze medalists P400,000. —JST/BAP, GMA News

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