Eumir Marcial seconds Irish Magno's pleas for allowance

Eumir Marcial seconded fellow boxer Irish Magno's pleas for more support as they continue to prepare for the Tokyo Olympics.

Magno on Tuesday aired her frustrations about the two-month delay in the distribution of her allowance, but she later deleted her post on Facebook.

On Thursday, it was Marcial's turn to open up on the plight of national athletes who are training amid the pandemic.

"Kapag nagsalita kami magiging masama ang labas. Nag-delete ng post si Irish Magno dahil pina-delete. Ngayon magiging masama ako dahil nagsalita ako at hindi ako nag-reach out," he wrote on Facebook.

("When we speak out, we would look bad. Irish Magno deleted her post because she was asked to delete. Now I will look bad because I have spoken out and I have not reached out.")

"Nakaka-low morale minsan dahil kami ginagawa namin lahat para makuha ang gintong medalya pero kulang ang suporta na natatanggap namin," he said.

("Sometimes our morale is down because we are doing everything we can to win the gold medal but we don't receive enough support.")

He added that athletes understand the situation is difficult due to the pandemic, but he hopes that they will not be forgotten as the Olympics is only a few months away.

Marcial and Magno booked their slots for the Tokyo Games in the Asia and Oceania Olympic Qualifying Tournament held in Amman, Jordan last year.

Magno is the first Filipina boxer to qualify for the Olympics, while Marcial is a gold medal hopeful for the Olympiad.

The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) on Thursday issued an advisory  that the January allowance of Olympic-bound athletes and coaches have been released.

The allowance for February, meanwhile, is currently being processed.

—MGP, GMA News