FOR Southeast Asians, the Beijing Winter Olympics will be a battle of pride.
Knowing a medal is out of reach, Fil-Am Asa Miller will be eyeing to come through with the best finish ahead of the seven other representatives from Southeast Asia — a fully tropical region.
Apart from the 21-year-old Portland, Oregon native, there will be skiers from Timor-Leste, Thailand and Malaysia in alpine skiing, which unfurls on Monday at the Ice River located atop Xiaohaituo Mountain.
It included Yohan Goutt Goncalves, a French-East Timorese who is making his third Winter Games stint after racing in Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018.
Thailand, meanwhile, has four entries in Zanon Nicola (men’s alpine skiing), Jaiman Mida Fah (women’s alpine skiing), Mark Chanloung (men’s cross country skiing) and sister Karen (women’s cross country skiing), while Malaysia has Jeffrey Webb and Aruwin Salehhudin.
Mr. Gonclaves admitted he and Mr. Miller are friends.
“We trained together and I think he [Miller] is a very good skier,” said Goncalves, who was 43rd in slalom in Sochi but didn’t finish in Pyeongchang where Mr. Miller wound up 70th. “I believe he could be faster than me but let’s see on the race day.
“We are still very far from a medal but what is important is that Timor-Leste is represented here,” he added.
The Philippines prides itself as the first fully tropical country to participate in the Winter Olympics when alpine skiers Ben Nanasca and Juan Cipriano, who are cousins, saw action in Sapporo 1972.
The cousins set the tone for more Filipinos seeing action in the Winter Games and to date, the country has the most participation in the quadrennial competitions among Southeast Asian nations at six — Sapporo, Calgary 1988, Albertville 1992, Sochi 2014, Pyeongchang and Beijing. — Joey Villar
